Twin Dilemma
by WinterAngel24
Summary: IMPORTANT NOTICE, PLEASE CLICK ON PROFILE TO SEE.
1. Chapter I

**So here is another story that I've started to type up. I think I have a total of five stories that I've written, but for now I'm only going to put up three. Tell me what you think and I hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer- I do _not_ own Katekyo Hitman Reborn!**

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><p>Chapter I<p>

**Alicia POV**

"Aaaaliiiiciiiaaaa~!" A body flung itself on me.

I didn't bother to look up from my book. "What is it Hailey?"

"Alicia, I'm going over to Anna's house today! So you don't have to wait for me after school!" Hailey said happily.

Hailey and I are identical twins. Well I say that, but our hair and eyes are different colors. Because of that and our personalities we've been known as the stereotypical yin and yang sisters. You see my hair is black and my eyes are your typical Asian brown. Hailey for some reason was born with white hair and bright blue eyes. I really like her eyes, they're like sapphires.

People used to tease Hailey all the time for her hair color. The doctors said she was just born without the chemical, or protein, or whatever that makes your hair have color. So people would call her things like granny, whitey, and some hurtful names as well.

So I being the oldest decided to become strong enough to protect my little sister. Incidentally one day they were teasing Hailey and they pushed me over my limit, and I beat the crap out of every single one of them.

Hailey made me promise not to go overboard again and started smiling more. She told me that as long as she had me, she would be able to smile and be happy. But really it's the other way around. _I_ need Hailey to be happy.

"Aliiiciiiaaaaa! Earth to Alicia!" A hand hit the backside of my head.

"Ouch! What the heck was that for?" I demanded.

"It's because Alicia went off into La La Land," Hailey said giggling. "Anyways I'm gonna go now! Be safe! I'll call you when I start heading home!" Hailey waved and skipped out of the room.

Really, I thought you were supposed to start acting older than a five year old when you turned 14!

I smiled. Hailey always knew how to make me happy. I promised I would always protect her. After all we're twins. We know everything about each other and we do everything together.

I remembered another promise and chuckled a little. When I told Hailey that we would do everything together she took it so seriously. One day she came up to me and made me promise that we would even get married together, and when I told her I thought all men were idiots she told me to find at least one idiot that I could tolerate so that we could both be wed together.

On the other hand, we haven't gone out with anyone. So I'm safe for now. Funny thing is during sixth grade guys started asking Hailey out, but she rejected every single one. Heck even in junior high there are still guys asking her out on dates all the time. She hasn't said yes to a single one.

After school I walked home. I didn't really have much homework and Hailey wasn't home, so I had a lot of free time. I ended up falling asleep.

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><p>I woke with a start.<p>

Something was horribly wrong.

I looked over at the clock on the TV. I had only been asleep for a couple hours. I heard a sound and turned to see mom and dad in the kitchen.

"Oh! Alicia you're awake! Sorry dear did we wake you?" My mom asked. Dad just smiled.

"Mom, where's Hailey?" I asked hesitantly.

"Your sister?" Mom placed a finger on her chin and thought a little, "I don't know she hasn't come home yet."

My heart was racing. This was bad. I could feel it. Something had happened.

I picked up my phone and called my sister's cell. It rang for a while and went to voicemail. I called again.

Same thing.

I called over and over. At some point I started crying.

"Dear? Honey what's wrong?" Mom asked, patting my back.

But I ignored her and tried calling one more time. If my sister didn't pick up this time I was going to go out and search for her.

The phone picked up. "Ah, Hailey! Are you okay? Why didn't you pick up?"

"Excuse me," a different voice came through the receiver. My heart felt like it froze. "Are you related to Miss Hailey Mitchell?"

"Ah," my voice got caught in my throat. I coughed a little to clear it. "Y-yes I am. I'm her sister."

"Are your parents nearby? We would like to speak to them." I handed my phone over to my dad numbly.

I'm not stupid. I know what this means.

I could vaguely hear my dad's short relies to whoever was on the phone. After he hung up he handed back my phone and told us that Hailey was in the hospital. We hurriedly pulled on jackets and rushed over. The lady at the front desk told us that Hailey was in the operation room and that we could wait outside.

I feel so scared.

I can't live without Hailey. My sister is everything. We have the strongest connection of anyone I've ever met, and I don't want to let that go. We were supposed to be together forever.

I hugged my knees close.

Mom was crying very loud, and dad was trying his best to stay strong for both of us. But I knew that he was on the verge of breaking down too.

"Please. Please let Hailey and me stay together," I prayed under my breath.

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><p><strong>Hailey POV<strong>

It hurts.

It really hurts.

Alicia help me. I don't like this.

I can't breathe. Something feels like it's crushing my chest.

I want to cry. I don't want to be here. I want to be with Alicia.

All the sudden I wasn't hurting anymore. Actually I was standing behind some doctors. One of them moved and I saw…me.

Oh… I'm dead…

I heard screaming outside this room.

I wonder if I can walk through walls and stuff now. I pushed my hand against the door and fell through.

"Ah! Alicia!" I shouted and ran toward my sister, but stopped just before I reached her.

There were two Alicia's.

One was standing in front of me looking at the other Alicia on the floor in shock. Mom was crying really hard over this Alicia. Mom kept shaking the Alicia on the floor and was shouting at her. So was dad.

Alicia reached out to touch mom, but her hand passed through.

Some doctors rushed over and took the Alicia on the floor away; the other Alicia stayed behind and just watched as her other self was rolled away.

"Alicia?" I reached and found I was able to touch her. She looked up and smiled. She hugged me tight and cried a little.

"Hailey! Hailey! I'm so relieved! I thought you were going to be taken away from me!" I could tell she was close to flat out sobbing.

I wasn't sure what to do. I was happy to see my sister and know that we were still together, but…"Alicia…I think we're dead."

Alicia pulled back and smiled sadly. "Yeah…I know."

We looked at mom and dad.

"I guess this is where we're supposed to say good-bye," I said quietly.

"Yeah," Alicia whispered.

A light appeared next to us.

"Guess that's our exit! See ya mom. See ya pops!" Alicia tried to smile a little.

I wiped my eyes. "Bye mom. Bye daddy. We love you."

We walked towards the light and found ourselves… floating…in an office?

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><p><strong>Everyone POV<strong>

"Hey Mark!" a voice called out behind the two girls, "I told you to fix that gravity thing before the newbie's got here!"

"Stop telling me what to do! I'm working on it! Sheesh!" Another voice answered.

There was a click and the two girls fell to the floor. Whereas the twins were able to land successfully on their feet, a thud where the voices came from indicated that the other person was not so successful.

A door opened to their left and a man in a suit walked through. "Welcome Mitchell twins. I'm Jared Strauss, I hope your wait hasn't been too unpleasant."

'This guy is _so_ fake,' Alicia thought to herself.

"We're all good!" Hailey answered excitedly.

"That's wonderful. Now before I send you on your way, I would like you to sign this waiver!" The man flicked his hand and a piece of paper and a pencil landed on the desk in front of us.

"Hold it! A waiver? What the hell are you trying to pull? You haven't even told us what's going on here! Who are you!" I demanded.

A guy wearing a dress shirt and pants, and a loose tie walked in with a stack of small books. "Hey, if you keep joking like that, they're going to think you're the devil trying to trick them into hell."

"I'm so hurt!" The man in the suit mocked being offended, "These two pretty young girls are more than capable enough to tell it was a joke!" The paper disappeared.

"Ooooooh," Alicia said slowly, "I get it. This is the heaven for idiots. Hailey and I walked into the wrong light. Now if you'll excuse us, we're going to look for the entrance to heaven for normal people." Alicia grabbed Hailey's hand and turned around. The other man snickered.

"Wait! What are you talking about? This is the normal entrance!" Jared exclaimed.

"Somehow I doubt that," Alicia said, but she turned back around to face the men.

The man in the suit sighed. "Fine, fine. I'll just give you your trial. Intern you do it!"

The other man sighed. "I apologize for this idiot. I'm Mark Teasdale. I'll be helping conduct your trial to heaven."

"Huh? Trial? Why do we have to do a trial? Don't all kids get a free pass?" Alicia asked.

"Kids yes. But at the age 13 you start losing the innocence and purity you were naturally born with, and the rest of your life you spend proving your soul is a good one. Those who die between the ages 13 and 50 have to go through a trial since they didn't live long enough to prove themselves," Mark explained.

"This is bull crap!" Alicia shouted, "We die young and have to prove ourselves? I want a lawyer."

"Request denied," Jared said. "Now hurry and pick a world for you to be tested in."

"A world?" Hailey asked.

"Shut up if you're not going to explain!" Mark said irritated, rubbing his temples. "Okay, anyways…for your trial you can pick any world from this list," he pointed to the stack of books.

"So we have, what, 15 different worlds to choose from?" Alicia asked eyeing the books.

Mark chuckled a little. "Not 15, more like 65 million. The others are closed right now."

"Wow…that's a lot of choices!" Hailey said slightly nervously.

"Ooooooh! Why not choose a world from your favorite book! Or maybe a TV series! Or a cartoon!" Jared said excitedly.

"Look can we do this without the idiot? I have a very low tolerance for his kind," Alicia asked Mark pointedly.

"Sooooorry," Jared sang, "But Mark is just an intern, soooooo I have to be here in order for this to all be official."

Hailey laughed a little, but it was more because Alicia's eyebrow started to twitch in irritation, rather than Jared's irritating antics.

Alicia took a deep breath. "Okay. So you're saying that we can choose to be sent to our favorite book, cartoon, manga, whatever?"

Jared and Mark nodded, Jared a little more dramatic.

Alicia turned to her sister. "Okay then, Hailey you choose."

Hailey put her fist against her lips in thought. "Well~… why don't we try that anime slash manga we recently finished. You liked it right?"

"Katekyo Hitman Reborn? I guess. I was more for wanting to fight that Hibari guy," Alicia said with a yawn.

Mark nodded. "Alright then, if that's your choice then please step forward and I'll send you there now."

Jared stood up from his desk and walked over to the girls. "Listen, when you go to this world be sure to remember that those people are all real. It won't be characters in a story anymore. Just because you read it one way doesn't mean life can't make it happen another. Just like in your old world, the future here isn't written in stone," Jared told the girls, actually very serious this time.

Mark nodded. "Also try not to fall in love. It's more troublesome for everyone. Now, are you ready to go?"

Hailey nodded, but Alicia rolled her eyes.

"Okay then, I've already sent the news of you two coming ahead to the others. They'll take care of your training and whatnot. So see you!" Mark smiled finally and waved.

"Haaaaaaave fuuuuuuuun!" Jared sang, once again acting ridiculous.

Hailey waved enthusiastically, but Alicia raised an eyebrow and asked "Why are you acting like that? You haven't even told us how to get there."

Suddenly a hole in the floor appeared under Hailey and Alicia and they disappeared.

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><p><strong>End of chapter I. This chapter was for the background detail, the story really starts off in the next half of next chapter. Please review!<strong>


	2. Chapter II

**Yo. So I might not be updating as quickly because of school, and I've lost the ability to use one of my thumbs for the next couple of weeks or more. Anyways I hope you like this chapter. The twins will finally head over to Namimori next chapter!**

**I also want to add a special thank you to colbub! ^^**

**Disclaimer- I do _not_ own Katekyo Hitman Reborn**

**Please R&R, enjoy**

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><p>Chapter II<p>

**Alicia POV**

Hailey and I landed with a thud.

"That's it! I'm gonna pulverize those two!" I shouted to the ground. I tried to get up, but my limbs weren't responding very well.

"Hey Ali! We got a couple of new recruits!" A male voice called out.

"Oh? Your right! Hey how're you doin'?" A woman's voice asked above me.

I looked up. A pretty girl with brown hair and eyes was kneeling by me. "I guess I could be better," I grumbled. "How's Hailey? How's my sister?"

"Your sister looks fine," Ali answered, "It's common for new recruits to show up unconscious. I'm surprised you're awake, considering what age they sent you here and all."

"Huh?" I asked confused. I looked down at my hand and saw that it was…smaller? "What the fuuuuuuuudge!"

Ok. Now I was able to stand, albeit unsteadily, but standing none the less. There was a mirror in the corner and I ran as fast as I could manage over to it. I stood in front of it in shock.

A man walked in. "So how are they?" He asked. I tackled him and grabbed his collar.

"Why am I a kid? Why the hell do I look like I'm five again? I finally get past friggin' elementary and I get shrunk to a five year old? What the hell! I just started going through that damn puberty, why the hell would I want to go through it again! Why? Why am I like this?" I demanded while shaking the dude.

"Hey Zach," Ali called cheerfully from next to my sister, "I was just about to explain the whole age flux thing to her."

"Why is it that I always get blamed for this?" The person named Zach ran his hand through his hair. He picked me up and made me sit down on Ali's lap. "Look newbie, you're like that because it's easiest to train yourself for your mission when you grow up with it."

"That's right!" Ali confirmed.

"What's their mission?" Zach asked.

Ali held up a piece of paper. "No clue. I haven't gotten a chance to read it yet."

Zach caught the paper and held it up. "Hmph, that's gonna be a tough one for these two."

"What is it?" I asked, ok demanded.

Zach rolled his eyes, but told me anyways. "You're supposed to play guardian angels for a boy named Sawada Tsunayoshi and his six friends. Through your main charge is Sawada. You only really have to guide and give advice to his guardians."

"Ooh! What's their weapon of choice!" Ali asked excitedly.

"It looks like the one in your lap will be best suited with firearms and hand to hand combat. The other one will be best with-" Zach whistled, "That's quite the list. Not only hand to hand combat, but the staff, swords, knives, and archery, with guns as her secondary."

"Of course Hailey would have that many!" I sniffed.

"Well I'll go put your sister to bed since she's asleep, why don't you go with Zach and start your training," Ali said as she put me down and stood up.

"Don't want to," we said at the same time.

"Fine, fine. Take her to David then," Ali waved us off.

"Wait!" I called after Ali, "I want to stay with Hailey! We promised each other that we would stay together, and she's going to want me to be there when she wakes up."

"Hmmm…" Ali tapped a finger against her chin. "Well then how about I carry Hailey and stay with you while you train! I can also give you a tour of this place while we're at it!"

This Ali person is _way_ too positive, but she's like Hailey so I guess it's ok.

Speaking of Ali, she's walking away. Ah crap! My legs are too short for this. I have to run to keep up with this person!

"Ali, wait up!" I called after her, "My legs are too short to keep up with your pace."

"Oops! Sorry. Don't worry squirt, you'll grow up before you know it!" Ali said cheerfully.

"So I'm guessing that us being so young means that our main charge is the same age right?" I asked, trying to keep a conversation going.

"Yup, but you'll get more details about that from the head guardian angels. Over here that's going to be Zach and David." Ali told me.

I raised an eyebrow skeptically. "Head guardian angels?"

"Yeah. After Zach and David passed their own trials, they decided they wanted to continue helping others who get sent on trials."

"Was this the world that they were tested in?"

"Ha, ha! No, We can't go back to our original world or the world we took our trial in. In those two worlds Zach and David are dead. So if they were to suddenly reappear, even by accident, it would cause some serious problems."

"So who are you playing guardian angel for?"

"Hmm? Me? Oh, I'm protecting a woman named Aria."

"Aria? As in the current sky arcobaleno, the sky princess, the one who carried the orange pacifier after Luce, Aria?"

"Yup. I'm helping her through as much as possible since she dies so young. I actually became her guardian before she became the replacement sky arcobaleno."

"So you're her friend?"

Ali smiled sadly. "No…it's dangerous for guardian angels to become too close to their charge. When the time comes for our trials to end, we have to fade away and it's best not to have too many attachments on either side. I'll be done with my trial before Aria goes, so if we aren't very close then she can't miss me too much now can she?"

"So how do our trials end? I mean do we just die in this world the way we originally kicked the bucket?"

"Depends. Some die the way they did in their original world, but I've known of a few who die the mafia way."

"Ugh. The mafia way?"

"You get shot." Ali held up my file and read it a little. "Yeah, see, you kinda just dropped dead because of your connection to your sister so you're likely to go out the mafia way."

I made a face at this. "I don't want to die here by getting shot."

"Well you could also be one of the ones who go out by illness."

"That sounds long and painful."

"Well you're running out of options squirt."

As we walked around this giant building, Ali told me about the different rooms and facilities. As it turns out, we now reside in a small village. The building we arrived in was the main office area. We were going to have our intellectual studies here too. The physical training facilities were right behind this building and each member had a house to themselves.

Unfortunately for Hailey and me, since we were so young we would have to live with another member. On the other hand, I suppose we were lucky enough to get bunked with Ali. What I didn't completely understand was that we were the youngest members. The youngest before us were in their late teens. The rest were in their 20's to mid 30's.

When we went outside and started heading to the training facilities I was reminded why I hated being a little kid. The females that spotted us came rushing over and started cooing over me. Lucky Hailey was sleeping on Ali's back with her face hidden behind Ali's shoulder, so I got all the unwanted attention.

"Aaaaaww! She's so cute!" One with light (like nearly white) blond hair squealed in my face and pulled me into a hug.

"Aaaaw! She's so small! I wanna play with her!" A girl with red hair and green eyes giggled and pulled me into a hug as well.

"Oooh! Let's do her hair!" A girl with black hair said excitedly.

"Yeah! And we can dress her up!" A girl with strawberry blond hair said enthusiastically as she picked me up.

Oh my god what was this. What am I, your friggin' dolly?

I sent a desperate WILL-YOU-F-ING-SAVE-ME-ALREADY? look to Ali.

She giggled but walked forward to stop them from taking me away. "Girls, chill. I'm giving these two a tour and then this one is going to train with David for a little bit."

"Aaaaaah, Ali you're so stingy!" The strawberry blond complained.

"Yeah, you just want her for yourself!" The girl with the red hair grumbled.

The moment my feet touched the ground I ran and hid behind Ali's leg.

I can't believe how helpless I am in this state!

Thankfully those women didn't follow us as we continued on our way. The rest of the way to the training facilities Ali explained how everyone here made up the Perduto e Dimenticato Famiglia. The Dimenticato Famiglia for short. Since everything in this world revolved around the mafia, it was natural that our group of the dead on trials would form a mafia family as well. It made each of our trials a whole lot easier.

As we neared a rather large structure the wall was blown apart.

"The wall! The wall…..the wall was blown apart. The wall was destroyed. Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god!" I cried out as I panicked and pointed to the other 3/4 of the building.

Ali just laughed at me. "Hey David! Jamie! That's coming out of your budget!"

A guy popped his head out of the _huge_ hole and waved at us. "Hey Ali. We were testing out Jamie's weapon of choice."

"Ali! Ali! Look! I can finally use this missile launcher properly!" A girl called excitedly as she ran out of the partially destroyed building.

"Oh my god! She's running out of there with a _missile launcher_! What are you trying to do kill us?" I screamed and backed away.

For some reason this made Ali break out into a fit of laughter. The other girl, Jamie, slowed down and walked the rest of the way to us. But I wasn't taking any chances. If that thing went off, I wanted to make sure that I could grab Hailey and make a run for it.

When Ali finally calmed down looked at me and said, "Sorry, your reactions were just so funny. We've been around this stuff for so long that we've gotten used to it. Anyways, you can't die. You're technically already dead. I mean it would still hurt a lot, but you would still remain in this world."

"Hey, who's the munchkin?" The guy, apparently named David, asked.

I could feel a vein throbbing. What was with all the stupid shorty nicknames?

"This one's Alicia!" Ali answered as she handed over Hailey's and my file, "Since she was conscious after landing I decided you should see her now."

"Huh, you were awake right after getting here? That's pretty good! So that means you should have sun flames." David glanced over me and Hailey.

Jamie raised her eyebrows. "But I'm pretty sure you had to have something stronger than just sun flames. I mean she's _five_."

"Well it says here that they're twins. I've heard that twins to have the more unusual types of flames. But we'll have to find out through training, eh?" David handed back the file. "So why don't we start with testing your endurance and combat ability"

"And how are you going to do that?" I asked sarcastically.

"Well I'll conduct the combat part. But for your endurance test why don't we just see how long you can outrun Jamie." David clapped and rubbed his hands together in anticipation.

"Oh I get it! This way you can finish working with Jamie too right?" Ali asked.

David nodded. "Exactly. It'll be like killing two birds with one stone."

"Okay shorty, you better start running!" Jamie said excitedly.

I looked at them in confusion. I could feel horror starting to creep into my chest. "Wait, what?"

"Start running squirt or you're in for a lot of pain." Ali sniggered a little.

And to make it worse, Jamie pointed the missile launcher straight at me.

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><p><strong>Hailey POV<strong>

I jumped off of Ali's back.

"Hailey you're awake?" Alicia cried as she hugged me.

"Yup, I've actually been awake this whole time." I laughed nervously and rubbed the back of my head.

"Huh? Then how come you didn't say anything?" Alicia demanded.

"Well, I wanted to study their behavior to see if they were really trustworthy. But then it sounded like you were going to get blown to bits so I decided that I should stop pretending."

"Cautious one, ain'tchya?" Jamie joked.

"But that's not bad. For the two of you to both be awake after the landing, you both have to have some pretty strong flames," David mused.

I lowered my head a little in shame. "I'm sorry. I just wanted to make sure that my sister and I could completely trust you guys. It's the only way I can protect my sister."

Ali bent down and patted my head. "It's okay kiddo. You two really care about each other, and it's important to have a strong bond. But you don't have to worry. Everyone here is really nice and we'll all do our best to help you two when we can!"

I smiled. I had already figured this out from listening to Alicia's and Ali's conversation.

"So are we gonna test them out or what?" Jamie called impatiently.

But I was already on the other side of the field hiding in the trees. "Go for it!"

"Hailey you traitor!" Alicia yelled as she booked it, as fast as she could away from Jamie.

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><p>Il perduto e dimenticato = The lost and forgotten<p>

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><p><strong>Thanks for reading! I'll try to finish up my next chapter soon! <strong>

**Also I want to say get well to my friend Lily (winterlily24) who is in the hospital right now! I hope you feel better soon!**

**Please R&R! I would like to hear your opinions!**


	3. Chapter III

**So here is another update. Thank you to everyone who reviewed, alerted, and favorited. The reviews really give me incentive to type up this story. For those concerned with how similar this story is to My Heavenly Judgement and the Guardian Angel, I thought about this too and was hesitant to put this story up because of it. But I asked colbub if it was ok with her and she said it was fine.**

**Please tell me how you feel about this story! I'm trying not to, but I'm pretty sure my chapters will end up coming up based on reviews.**

**Disclaimer- I do _not_ own Katekyo Hitman Reborn**

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><p>Chapter III<p>

**Alicia POV**

I woke up with a start as my alarm clock went off. Yawning I turned to see Hailey still asleep. I smiled. We were 14 years old today, and it was also the anniversary of our death, _and_ it was the anniversary of us coming to this world.

We found out from Ali that they count the birthdays of when you get to this world because when you arrive here everyone starts out younger and starts aging from that point.

I forced myself to get out of bed and walk over to the closet.

I am definitely _not_ a morning person. Then again, Hailey is a lot worse. It's a wonder how she managed to survive all these years, considering how many times she would run into walls or fall down stairs if you got her up too early in the morning. For us anything before nine o' clock was an ungodly hour.

After trudging through the bathroom, I shook Hailey awake and waited for her so that we could head downstairs.

The members of our famiglia were throwing us a surprise good-bye party. Although, it wasn't really a surprise anymore because Hailey was so good at collecting information she had found out _way_ before they had even started ordering decorations and whatnot.

During all our training Hailey and I got good enough where we could go on real missions to practice our skills. We were actually quite good and earned quite a lot. Turns out the Perduto e Dimenticato Famiglia were pretty infamous. Despite the whole staying in the shadows effort, we were all _really_ good at our jobs, so~ we had a lot of requests.

Since Hailey and I had to keep a low profile in order to do a trial later on, we wore masks so that no one would recognize us. David would often come with us so that we could keep our cover, and because he was like an over protective dad. Zach came sometimes, but only because he liked and cared for Hailey. Zach and I didn't get along well.

I think I'm going to miss staying here. I really like everyone. Because of everyone's efforts, Hailey and I became really strong. I think that I might really be able to protect Hailey this time.

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><p>When we walked outside we were assaulted with confetti.<p>

Did I mention how much I hate confetti? It's a waste of paper.

I forced a smile. "Oh, look Hailey. They are throwing us a party!"

"Boo~! You found out didn't you," Ali pouted.

"Sorry Ali. I was just curious about what you were doing and I ended up figuring it out," Hailey looked down like she was guilty, but I could tell she was faking. However knowing Ali and the rest they would fall for it hook, line, and sinker.

"Don't worry Hailey! It's ok, we already knew you'd find out," Ali said immediately.

Yup. Hook, line, and sinker.

David laughed. "Hey you two! Get over here, we want to show you all your gifts!"

Hailey and I walked over. There were two rather large boxes. One had Alicia written in big letters on colorful gift wrap, and the other with a pretty and loopy Hailey written on the wrapping.

"For some reason, I dread opening that thing," I muttered.

"Don't say that! It's going to help you!" Ali said excitedly. I looked at her disbelieving, but tore off the wrapping paper with Hailey.

We both had gotten a suitcase. Inside mine was a wide range of handguns, sniper rifles, bullets, gun powder, and a wide variety of explosive making materials. Wait…there was even and elephant gun….what the heck?

Hailey had gotten two short poles plus a couple of handguns and bullets. One pole was slightly curved and both extended. The slightly curved pole extended into a bow and the other into a regular staff. Or that's what I thought till Hailey hit another button and the staff split into two and turned into swords. We also discovered a couple of knives and needles. Ali explained that the best way to carry the needles was to put them in Hailey's hair. Like she ever would!

We both got holsters to hold our weapons in place, and so that we could carry and hide them easily.

"And guess what!" Ali exclaimed, barely holding in her excitement, "We all pitched in and bought your two a car to share, and a motorcycle for each of you!"

I looked at her like they were nuts. Sure we knew how to ride a motorcycle, but I'm pretty sure it was illegal for two minors to be driving those things around Japan. And don't even get me started on the car.

"I know each of us has enough money to buy you all that stuff ten times over, but this way it's a group present! And don't worry about licenses we got them for you!" Jamie said and held up a couple of plastic cards.

I dead panned. Oh my god, they were serious.

"And for one more surprise, I'm going to come with you," David said cheerily. "I'll drive you two around in the car so you won't get in trouble, and as long as you wear helmets no one will be able to tell that you're underage."

Somehow I doubt that.

"Alright, now let's get this party started!" The red head and green eyed Nicole shouted.

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><p><strong>Hailey POV<strong>

Overall I think the party was a lot of fun. Alicia spent a lot of time bashing her head into a wall after the presents and David's news, but I think it did make her slightly happy.

Everyone there, except David, Zach, Alicia and myself, got thoroughly drunk. I ended up laughing a lot. I never expected Ali to have such a low tolerance for alcohol.

I'm going to miss everyone here a lot. They're like my family. I love them all. It was the first time anyone besides Alicia liked me right off the start. Most people made fun of me because my hair or eyes, but everyone here wasn't like that. I feel really happy here.

But tomorrow is the start of our trial. I don't know what will happen, but I'm going to hope for the best. I'm sure that if we try our best to follow the story line, then everything should turn out ok.

* * *

><p><strong>Alicia POV<strong>

I pulled myself with all my might toward the steps to the plane.

Why was it that I was straining to get on the plane? Simple. It was because Ali and Jamie were sobbing and clutching me with everything _they_ had.

Jamie, Zach and Ali were the only ones able to see us off. Ali, Jamie, and even Hailey were crying and saying good-bye.

After I had said, "Well you can't miss us if we don't leave, so see ya!" Both Ali and Jamie had started sobbing even harder and latched themselves onto me.

So as I said before, I was now using every ounce of my strength and the railing to pull myself towards the plane.

Thankfully David came to my rescue. "Alison, Jamie, let go of Alicia. We have to go now. And don't you want to give Hailey a good-bye hug as well?"

"B-b-but they're a-a-all g-g-grown u-up!" Ali wept. "I-I-I r-remember w-w-w-when they f-first arrived. I-I-I'm g-gonna m-m-miss y-you squirt! Y-y-you _better_ stay i-i-in c-contact! E-email u-u-us every day, got it!"

"Okay, Okay! Now get off!" I cried.

The moment they let go, I ran into the plane and watched from the doorway.

Hailey definitely got the better deal. Ali and Jamie both gave her a big bear hug and let go. They didn't cling to her at all. Then again, that may because they were trying to make Hailey feel better.

But soon we were waving farewell out the windows and took off into the air, heading to Namimori, Japan and our trial.

* * *

><p><strong>Everyone POV<strong>

David drove a sleek silver car away from the airport soon after they had landed and drove all three of them to a bunch of apartment complexes.

"You're kidding me," Alicia said as soon as she stepped out of the car, "We're staying here? This place is for rich people! Whatever happened to blending in?"

"It's fine," David soothed, "We needed a big enough base of operations, so this place fit perfectly."

"Don't tell me you own this whole building," Alicia said tiredly.

David grabbed his bags and started walking toward the entrance. "No, no, no…just the whole top floor…"

Alicia hit the nearest wall with her head several times.

Hailey giggled and jogged after David. "I kinda like it here!"

"Aaah, Kiyomizu-sama! It's good to see you again," The receptionist said. His voice was dripping with fake sincerity, only used for those with a lot of money and a high social status.

Hailey and Alicia couldn't help but think that the man had a very long nose, which would come in handy when sticking it up in the air to the lower class.

"Hello there, could I have the keys to our floor?" David asked politely.

"Yes, yes. Of course," the receptionist handed David a set of keys and the trio headed up.

"Talk about snooty," Alicia muttered when they entered the elevator. Hailey giggled.

The top floor of the apartment complex was very pristine. Everything looked new and well kept. David gave Hailey and Alicia key to one of the rooms and went off to his own. When the two opened the door their jaw dropped.

This "room" had two floors. The bottom floor had a full blown kitchen, bathroom, and living room. The upper floor had a large landing as well as two master bedrooms with their own bathrooms connected.

The living room had a couple of couches and low table, as well as a large flat screen TV. A large dining table and chairs were in between the living room and kitchen. The landing has a small sofa, a couple armchairs, and a coffee table in the middle.

"I feel kind of small," Hailey whispered.

"I feel like if I touch _anything_ it may break," Alicia whispered back.

The two explored their new home and unpacked the boxes that were sent ahead. They really did like their apartment. It was gorgeous. They had a great view from all the windows. They discovered that a glass door connected to the living room led to a large patio.

"Yeah," Alicia nodded, pleased with the apartment, "I could get used to this."

* * *

><p><strong>Alicia POV<strong>

The next day we walked up to Nami jr High rather early. We needed our uniforms and schedules, so I guess earlier is better than later right? But that meant getting up _way_ too early for our liking. I was practically carrying Hailey to school to prevent her from running into a car or something.

I don't know if this can be considered lucky or not, but right after we took our first step past the gate we got to meet our first important character. It was none other than the infamous Hibari Kyoya.

"Trespassing on school grounds is forbidden, leave or I shall bit you to death." Hibari pulled out his tonfas.

"Hold it there tonfa boy," I said coldly, "We're not trespassing. We're transferring."

"Hn, don't call me such a ridiculous name," Hibari growled.

"What you got a problem with that," I smirked, "What's the harm when it's the truth?"

Hibari and I both tried to attack each other, but someone stopped us.

Hailey had caught my fist in one hand and Hibari's tonfa in the other. "Knock it off you two."

"Woaw," Hibari smirked.

"Please forgive my sister; she can be a little hot-headed. I'm Hailey Kiyomizu and this is my sister Alicia. If you would please allow us to pass, we need to find the office."

"Hn," Hibari put his tonfas away. He motioned for us to follow him.

Right before we started walking again, Hailey collapsed against me and fell back asleep.

Little twit. She's there for the important part, but leaves the rest for me. No way am I going to let her sit the rest out. I shook her awake again and dragged her after Hibari.

"So tonfa boy, if you don't want me calling you names what's yours?" I don't know why, but seeing Hibari in all his violent glory made me want to taunt him.

He glared at me. "Hibari Kyoya," he said stiffly. After showing us the office he stalked off.

"You know," Hailey said as she rubbed her eyes, "some poor student is going to be bitten to death, and it's all your fault."

"Eh," I shrugged, "I can't help it if that guy's so easy to irritate. I can't wait to fight him!"

* * *

><p><strong>Everyone POV<strong>

After Alicia and Hailey had changed their uniform they walked over to their classroom. The teacher wrote their names on the wall and had them introduce themselves.

"I'm Alicia Kiyomizu," Alicia said shortly, without really looking at anyone. She was already bored.

"Hi! I'm Hailey Kiyomizu. As you can see, we're twins! I like star gazing and cloud watching, and I dislike name calling! We just transferred from America to learn our father's culture and I really like it here so far!" Hailey being the polar opposite of Alicia, of course had to be cheerful and spunky during their introduction.

"Okay, that's enough. You two can have those seats in the back," the teacher said lazily.

Right then the door slammed open and a mop of brown hair came through. "I'm sorry teacher, I slept in and-" the boy tripped on…nothing. Tsuna has finally arrived.

Hailey and Alicia each caught an arm to prevent him from falling.

"Careful Sawada-san. We don't want to see you get hurt," Hailey said kindly.

Tsuna blushed and stuttered apologies and a thank you before he ran off to his seat.

Alicia and Hailey followed suit. Both smiled and thought, "Mission start."

* * *

><p><strong>Their mission is finally starting. Reborn isn't there yet, but they've met their charge. Though Hailey had a slip up, did you notice?<strong>

**Please R&R.**


	4. Chapter IV

**Ciao. I now present another chapter of Twin Dilemma. Thank you to all the readers, and a special thanks to those who reviewed.**

**Thank you Lily for reviewing. I hope you get out of the hospital soon!**

**Disclaimer- I do _not_ own Katekyo Hitman Reborn**

**Please R&R**

* * *

><p>Chapter IV<p>

**Alicia POV **– A few weeks later

Class was…._extremely boring_!

Hailey and I learned all this crap many years ago. To sit through it again is akin to having your nails ripped out.

Okay, maybe it isn't _that_ bad, but still.

At least we both got a window seat. I sat in front of Hailey, and incidentally we were both sitting next to Tsuna.

Currently we are in math.

I wonder if I should take a nap. If the teacher calls on me I could probably answer, no prob. Then again, I really don't want to be hit on the back of the head with a book or ruler.

"Sawada!" Mr. Nezu suddenly called out.

"Hiiie!" Tsuna squealed and stood up, "Yes sensei?"

"Answer question 32."

Tch. Another teacher was picking on this kid. It was so irritating. I hate bullies of all ages. I also can't stand people who don't even have the slightest bit of backbone.

Tsuna mumbled out an answer.

"Wrong again Sawada. How could you ever possibly contribute to society if you continue to be such a failure?" The teacher taunted. Nearly all the students were laughing at Tsuna's misfortune and calling him 'Dame-Tsuna'.

I snapped. After a couple weeks of this I had, had enough.

"The answer is 12," I said loud enough for the teacher to hear me over the jeers.

"What was that Kiyomizu-san?"

"I said the answer is 12. Tch! It's no wonder Sawada didn't get it, your teaching skills are horrible."

"How dare you Kiyomizu-san!"

"What? You're denying it?" I stood up, "I doubt half your class understood what you've been spouting! You have no right to make fun of your students if _you_ are an incapable teacher! And you!" I grabbed Tsuna by his collar, "Grow a backbone! If you had some damn confidence then you would be just fine!"

"Alicia!" Hailey pulled me back, "calm down."

I clicked my tongue, but released Tsuna and sat down. Tsuna absolutely looked terrified.

Hailey smiled at the teacher with her eyes close. "But sensei, I really don't think you should be so mean to your students. As a teacher you should be doing your best to raise their confidence and help them learn," Hailey opened her eyes halfway. She maintained her smile, but her eyes were absolutely deadly. "After all, students are a reflection of the teacher. And I'm sure your wife would be rather displeased if you lost _another_ job."

Nezu gulped. "Kiyomizu-san you should not threaten your teacher."

Hailey closed her eyes again. "I'm not threatening _sensei_, I'm just stating the facts."

I smirked. Hailey _was_ always good at getting her way, whether it was nicely or with a subtle (and extremely dangerous) threat.

The door slid open to the classroom.

"I apologize for interrupting your class, but I need Alicia and Hailey Kiyomizu to come with me." I glanced up and saw David.

Crap.

This meant a job.

Hailey bounced up and ran over. I followed with much less enthusiasm.

"Ah, you must be their father?" Mr. Nezu had a smirk on her face. "Your daughters have been threatening me. I would like you to make sure they take responsibility for their actions."

David smiled pleasantly. "Oh, I'm not their father. And I could hear you from down the hall. I have to agree with them, you shouldn't intentionally humiliate any of your students."

Nezu spluttered, but we had already left.

"Serves the bastard right," I muttered darkly. "I guess you already packed our bags huh?"

David nodded. "Yup. Everything's ready to go."

"Hmmm. So we're going to reveal ourselves through a party huh?" Hailey frowned a little.

"Okay, stop leaving me in the dark. Where are we going and what's the job?" I demanded.

"We're going to Italy to attend a party hosted by the Vongola Famiglia," David answered.

This time I frowned. "And from what Hailey said earlier, I'm guessing we aren't wearing our masks this time right?"

"That's right. Now that your trial has started you no longer have a need to wear your masks."

I let out a gust of air. "This is going to be one irritating party."

* * *

><p><strong>Everyone POV<strong>

Hailey fidgeted and tugged at her midnight blue dress. She didn't really like going to these kinds of parties. Sure she seemed confident while she was there, but during the entire event she's really quaking inside. All the people who attend these parties were dangerous. After all, it was the mafia they were dealing with.

Alicia was just gazing out the window. Hailey had talked her into wearing a dress with the same design as hers, but a deep red instead of blue. Alicia felt like a freaking stop light. She knew that this dress would draw a lot of attention to her, but Hailey liked how it looked on her, and Alicia was _absolutely_ incapable of saying no to Hailey.

Even though the three were going to the party as "invited guest" they really only agreed because they caught wind of a chance assassination attempt on the ninth Vongola boss. It would be up to Hailey and Alicia to make sure this plan came to a failure, as it would affect _their_ mission.

The trio walked up to the entrance and the twins took a deep breathe. Show time.

A man at the entrance announced their arrival. "The Dimenticato Famiglia!"

Heads swiveled in their direction, and the three were immediately assaulted with wannabe rich people.

"Oh my, what cute little girls!"

"Are the masked twins not attending this time?"

"But these two are so much better than those masked girls! The other two were so scary!"

"I'm so glad young David has come along!"

"How old are you two? You're twins right?"

The list of comments and questions went on. David answered a few coolly, but Hailey and Alicia kept more to the back. Or as much as they could anyway.

"My dear guests, please allow the newcomers to at least come fully into the room. I'm sure there will be plenty of time to talk with them later." The crowd parted to show Vongola Nono himself.

'_Oh, thank god!_' Alicia thought. No one else would be able to tell, but Alicia knew Hailey felt relieved too.

"Sir Timoteo, thank you so much for inviting us," David said graciously as he held up a hand to shake.

"My pleasure young David. It's always good to see you," Vongola Nono shook David's hand warmly. "And who are these young ladies, accompanying you?"

"Actually, you've already met them."

"Oh?" Vongola Nono waved for the three of them to follow him. "It seems my years are catching up to me. Please do remind me when and where."

"It was at the holiday banquet, two years ago. My famiglia sent myself and these two to attend."

"Hmmm. I do remember two masked individuals accompanying you."

"Yes. The infamous black and white panthers, is none other than these two young ladies."

"My goodness! These two young girls?"

"Yes. They decided that they would reveal themselves at your get-together this evening."

Hailey stepped forward and curtsied. "Good evening Vongola Nono, my sister and I apologize for deceiving you."

Nono waved the apology away. "It matters not. I'm sure you have your reasons. But I am honored that you would choose my little party to divulge your identity, thank you."

Hailey smiled brightly.

"So what are your name? You two look awfully young for the title you two have acquired."

"My name is Hailey and this is my sister Alicia!" Alicia gave a slight curtsy. "We turned fourteen about a month ago!"

"My, you are even younger than I guessed. And I hope you two had a wonderful birthday! You know, a good friend of mine has a son who is the same age as you."

Hailey nodded. "I know! I'm one of the best in my famiglia for gathering information!"

Nono laughed warmly. "That is right. I forgot that you were the white panther."

"The Chiavarone Famiglia!" The announcer called out behind them.

"Hey Vongola Nono! Good to see you again," A young slightly dirty blond hair man walked over to the group. Following him were a couple subordinates.

"Hi Dino!" Hailey said cheerfully.

Dino paused before he shook Nono's hand and looked over at the twins. "Oh! Who are these two beautiful young women?"

Hailey giggled. "Flattery's nice, but it'll get you nowhere!"

"Dino, you shouldn't try to sweet talk every pretty girl you meet," Nono reprimanded, but Dino just grinned. "These two are actually the black and white panthers."

Now _this_ surprised Dino. "Wha? The-the black and white panthers?"

Hailey curtsied again. "Hi there! My name is Hailey and this is my sister Alicia!"

"Tsk, tsk, tsk," a high pitched voice said out of nowhere.

"Hi there Reborn!" Hailey said, folding her hands behind her back.

"It seems my student is still as pathetic as ever," Reborn in all of his suit and fedora glory popped up suddenly next to Nono.

"Ah, come on Reborn. I've come a long ways!" Dino smiled with embarrassment.

"So why reveal yourselves now?" Reborn asked, completely ignoring Dino and getting straight to the point. "From what I hear, each member of the Dimenticato Famiglia has a special mission, and they usually keep their identities hidden till then."

"Hmmm. Not every one of them. But in our case you'd be correct." There was no point in beating around the bush. After all they _were_ dealing with Reborn.

"So what is it?" Reborn practically demanded.

"We have a guard duty," Alicia answered.

"Who would be so important that the Dimenticato family would send two of their best?" A blond haired man asked as he walked up to the group.

"Good evening Iemitsu!" Hailey said politely. "Can you hold that thought?"

"Oh, do you need to take a breather for a moment?" Iemitsu asked.

"No, my sister and I need to do our job."

Hailey and Alicia moved simultaneously. While jumping in front and behind Nono, Hailey passed over the second half of her staff so that they both had a sword. And in a flash of movements they deflected dozens of bullets. Still before the others could react the two moved forward and cornered the assassin. Hailey stood behind the male with her blade pressed against his throat, while Alicia crouched slightly next to him with her blade pressed against his stomach.

Hailey still maintained her smile, though it had become a bit more sadistic. "I wouldn't move if I were you. Your partner won't be helping you, as she already made a run for it. And I'll cut you where you stand if I see any muscle movement indicating you're going to try to continue with your attack on Nono."

"These assignments are always so troublesome," Alicia sighed, "You'd think they'd learn that we can't be out maneuvered. Thank god our dresses had slits on the side so that we could still fight."

David walked over. "Nice job you two. And I suppose you already placed a tracker on the other one right Hailey?"

"Yup!" Hailey answered happily.

Alicia yawned. "I thought you already knew where their base was?"

"I do, but there's a few items I want to salvage, and this way I can get a complete layout. The blueprints that I hacked had a few rooms I'm curious about, this way will help."

Dino and his subordinates came forward and tied up the assassin. They took the man away to another room, where he could be questioned later.

"How did you know about that?" Iemitsu asked cautiously.

"I had my information network keep an eye out for this sort of stuff. After all it would affect Alicia's and my mission."

Alicia raised an eyebrow. "I thought David said we were getting paid to prevent this."

Hailey looked away from her sister, choosing to study the ceiling instead. "Well~, I told David to lie so that you wouldn't kick up much of a fuss."

"Why you little-" Alicia started, but Hailey cut her off with a hug.

"I'm sorry~!"

Alicia sighed in exasperation. She was a sucker for her sister and she knew it. Did she ever learn her lesson?

Not at all!

"It's ok," Alicia finally said wearily.

"Yay!" Hailey bounced up in joy. She turned back to the others. "Anyway to answer Iemitsu's earlier question, we are actually guarding your son."

Nono, Iemitsu, and Reborn looked surprised. Though, with Reborn it was really difficult to tell.

"Why my little Tsuna? I doubt you'd do this for me."

"I researched all of the Vongola Decimo candidates and was able to predict that the other three would die. I also calculated behavior and physical capability, as well as taking into account Nono's probable opinion and came to the conclusion that Tsunayoshi Sawada would be the best candidate to become Vongola Decimo." Hailey's lie was smooth and believable. The only ones who could tell it was a lie was Alicia, because they were sisters, and David, because Hailey told him.

"You couldn't possibly think that the current Tsuna-" Iemitsu started.

Hailey shook her head. "I never said the current Tsuna. I was thinking that Reborn could tutor him. That's what I put into my calculations anyway."

Vongola Nono stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Tsunayoshi was on my mind, and I had already considered sending Reborn after seeing the results with Dino… but with the information you brought me I think it's final. Reborn, as soon as you can please go to Japan as Tsunayoshi's tutor."

Reborn smirked. "Then I'll just go with the Dimenticato family to Japan."

"What? Reborn you're leaving me?" Dino had come back.

"I have someone else to teach now," Reborn said shortly.

Hailey picked up Reborn and hugged him, "Sorry Dino, but we're taking Reborn to Japan with us!"

"Hey Reborn! How come you don't hit her when she touched you?" Dino demanded.

"Because unlike you, she's strong. And I actually like her."

"Yay! Reborn likes me!" Hailey cheered. "Oh! That's right! I got this ready for you." Hailey handed over a file to Reborn. "It has Tsuna's personality, grades, status in school, nicknames, crush, and a few extras."

Iemitsu whistled. "You really are prepared."

Hailey smiled. "I wouldn't be the famous white panther if I couldn't do at least this much."

David checked his watch. "I think it's time for us to go."

"'Bout damn time. Any later and those other people were going to pounce us," Alicia complained.

"Ok then, Good bye Vongola Nono, Iemitsu, Dino, and big scary guardians. And we'll see you soon Reborn!" Hailey put Reborn down next to Nono and turned to go, but stopped suddenly. "Um Nono…"

The old Vongola boss looked at Hailey curiously. "Yes Hailey?"

"Um, there was something I wanted to tell you…" Hailey looked nervous and a little worried for the first time that night.

Alicia picked up what Hailey was about to do. "Hailey…" she said in a warning tone.

Hailey glanced over for a moment. "Um…well…just…just take care of yourself. Your famiglia really care about you."

Vongola Nono could tell something was off, but knew he wouldn't get any answers even if he tried, so he just smiled. "Thank you. Please take good care of yourselves as well."

Hailey nodded and left with her sister and David after one last smile.

* * *

><p><strong>Thanks for reading. Please review this chapter.<strong>

**Reviews make an author's world go round!**


	5. Chapter V

**Hey! Here is chapter five. I'm interested in your opinions as always. I'm sorry to those who said they were disappointed, I tried my best.**

**Shiro, I know you're reading this. Go visit Lily in the hospital! Lily if you get a chance to read this I hope you feel better and come home soon! winterlily24's fans please write a review for one of her stories! I'm sure it would make her day. Trust me sitting there all day in a hospital bed is very boring.**

**Please R&R**

**Disclaimer: I do _not_ own Katekyo Hitman Reborn!**

* * *

><p>Chapter V<p>

**Alicia POV**

We left a few days after the Vongola's event. The plane ride back was rather interesting. Hailey and Reborn talked a lot. But the subject the spent the longest discussing was torture- I mean tutoring methods.

Dear lord, when did my sister become a sadist?

We landed sometime after noon, so we decided to invite Reborn to stay over at our place for the night. That way he could meet Tsuna at the beginning of the week. Besides we had plenty of guest rooms so it wouldn't inconvenience us.

Reborn was going to leave at the time I refuse to even say because it gives me the shivers to even _think_ about getting up at that hour, so Hailey made sure to say good bye to Reborn before she went to bed. I don't really understand why she hugged him so much, or why he let her. We all knew that before his curse he was a full grown hitman. But then again, Reborn doesn't know we know that…yet.

* * *

><p><strong>Everyone POV<strong>

When Hailey and Alicia got to school the next day they made it time to see Tsuna yelling his confession to Kyoko in his boxers. They stood to the side and let the whole scene play out and didn't approach him till after Reborn had started to explain the dying will bullet.

Hailey giggled. "Here Tsu-Sawada-san," she pulled out a spare set of clothing, "You should change into these before going to class."

Tsuna blushed furiously. "U-uh, th-thank you!"

Hailey smiled and ruffled his hair. "No problem! Now hurry so you don't catch a cold!"

"Herbivores, what are you doing here." Hibari walked up behind Tsuna.

"Hiiiie I'm sorry Hibari-san! We're going now!" Tsuna ran off.

"Yo, Tonfa boy!" Alicia held up a hand and gave a slight wave. Hailey slapped the back of her head.

"Sorry Hibari-san. Please forgive my sister's stupidity. We're going to class now." Hailey smiled and dragged her sister to class.

They walked in to hear the class jeering and making fun of Tsuna.

"You won't go out with him right Kyoko-chan? After all he's dame-Tsuna," one of the more irritating boys asked Kyoko.

Alicia walked up to the boy and planted her foot into the small of his back, sending him flying. "Oi," she said to the class. Her voice was dripping with venom. "What did I say about the irritating jeering? Are all of you so pitiful that you have to center your inability to do anything onto one person? It's humans like all of you that make me sick."

Alicia stormed off to her seat, leaving a deathly quiet class.

Hailey laughed. "I think it was kinda interesting!"

A boy walked into the room and announced that during break Mochida wanted fight Tsuna in the gym.

"What, and the little prick couldn't even challenge Tsuna himself? What a weak moron," Alicia said loudly. The boy blushed furiously and ran away.

* * *

><p><strong>Hailey POV<strong>

"Ciaossu."

"Hey Reborn. I guess you've got most of your secret passageways built huh? Got your espresso maker and other furnishings in yet?" Hailey looked down at the wall next to her desk. A door had slid open to reveal Reborn.

"Good job white panther. You researched well."

Hailey smiled. "It's my job to know! Do you mind if I sit and watch Tsuna's match with you?"

"It's fine."

"Ok! See you later then!"

Reborn disappeared behind the wall again.

* * *

><p>When break came around I waved good bye to Alicia and walked toward the back entrance to the gym.<p>

Alicia and I decided that one of us should stay in the crowd to make sure Kyoko did her little encouragement thing for Tsuna. And since I had already told Reborn that I was going to sit with him during the match, Alicia was forced to stay with our classmates.

I guess I feel a little guilty. In our previous lives, after we had read about Kyoko's and Haru's boycott in the future arc, we had disliked the two girls. Kyoko seems like a nice enough girl, but what she does in the future really irritates us.

I found a staircase leading to the top railing of the gym and climbed up. The door was already unlocked, so I didn't have to use any of the skills I learned. Reborn was standing by edge with Leon the nipper gun ready.

"Hi Reborn!" I said as I sat down next to him.

"Hailey," he nodded.

The students had already gathered below us and Tsuna had walked in.

"Look at him quaking. This one has a long way to go."

I giggled. "But I'm sure with your help Tsuna will turn out just fine!"

I glanced around the room and saw a familiar baseball nut in the crowd and an extremely distinguishable silver head by the door.

I smiled and nodded to myself. Everything was going as it should.

* * *

><p><strong>Alicia POV<strong>

I can't believe Hailey left me to deal with all these twits. Worse of all, she left me to talk to Kyoko. Man I can't stand this girl. I don't mind Hana, but Kyoko is such a weak character in my book. I dislike all weak female characters.

I sighed and watched Tsuna running away from Mochida.

"Oi, Kyoko-san." I turned to face the naïve girl.

The orange haired girl looked at me. "What is it Kiyomizu-san?"

"Alicia is fine. I'm used to that version anyway."

"Then just call me Kyoko!"

"Ah…ok. Anyways shouldn't you be cheering for Tsuna? He is fighting for you after all."

"Ah, do you think it'd be alright?"

I smirked. "Trust me. It'd make his day."

"Eto. Ok…" She cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted with a determined look, "Sawada-kun, do your best!"

I had to stifle my laughter. Mochida's face was priceless.

I heard a gunshot and Tsuna fell backwards.

He shot up, ripping out of his cloths and charged at Mochida. That was too much, I couldn't contain my laughter after that.

* * *

><p><strong>Hailey POV<strong>

I heard Kyoko shout out a cheer for Tsuna and smiled a little.

"Fight with your dying will!" Reborn said and he shot Tsuna.

I smiled a little wider and stood up. "I'm going to go now. Do you want a lift?"

"Sure," Reborn hopped up and I caught him in my arms. "I'm sure you're aware of who I called from Italy."

I walked down the steps. "Yup! Gokudera Hayato, also known as the hurricane bomber."

I heard Reborn smirk. He jumped down and entered a secret passageway when we reached to bottom.

I walked over to Alicia to watch the very end of the fight.

* * *

><p><strong>Everyone POV<strong>

"Don't jump." Alicia gave a start. Hailey had appeared out of nowhere. Hailey sighed, "You really should raise your awareness of your surroundings."

The two watched as Kyoko ran over and talked to Tsuna. The boy's face fell, but after Kyoko said something else he cheered up again.

"It's going well," Hailey commented.

"Yup."

Hailey and Alicia walked over to Tsuna and Kyoko.

"Not bad Sawada," Alicia said, "You're finally starting to grow a backbone."

Tsuna blushed and looked away from the twin with the rougher personality.

Hailey giggled and pulled out another spare boy's uniform. "Here Sawada-san. I'm sure you'd like to change."

"Ah! Thank you again Kiyomizu-san. It's ok to call me Tsuna."

Hailey smiled. "Okay then! I'll call you Tsuna-kun! And you can call me Hailey-chan _and_ you can call my sister Risa-chan!"

"What?" Alicia just stared at her sister with a foreboding feeling entering her heart.

"Well I realized that your name is sort of difficult to say, so I thought Risa-chan would be a cute nickname!"

Alicia dead panned.

"You don't like it?" Hailey made puppy eyes at her sister.

You could almost visibly see streams of sweat rolling down Alicia's face as she tried to fight the urge to give into her sister. But it was a futile battle. "No... It's... fine," Alicia finally said with her eyes closed and an eyebrow twitching.

* * *

><p>After Tsuna's fight against Mochida during break, the rest of the day was rather peaceful.<p>

Hailey managed to trick Alicia into eating lunch with Kyoko and Hana, while she snuck off to the roof.

She liked it there. It was quiet and nobody went up there.

Hailey walked over to the center of the roof and flopped back. In this spot she could just lie there and enjoy the sun and clouds.

"Finally! No one's crowding around me and I can finally get some peace and quiet," Hailey muttered.

"What are you doing here herbivore?"

Or not. Hailey glanced over at the water tower and saw Hibari also resting up on the roof.

Hailey sighed. "I apologize Hibari-san. I was trying to evade the large group of students who have taken to following me and my sister. I'll leave now so I won't disturb you."

Because of Hailey's easy going and bubbly attitude, she had accumulated followers much like Yamamoto. Alicia tried to manage them, much like Hana manages Kyoko's fan boys, but the crowd wouldn't dissipate that much.

"I didn't say you were crowding," Hibari said as Hailey stood up.

Hailey blinked. Hibari didn't mind her being here? She broke out into a more natural smile. "Thank you very much." She went back down.

"Hn," was Hibari's only reply.

Perhaps Hibari didn't mind because of the few times Hailey had helped him. She had often sacrificed herself so that the crowds in the hallway would clear. And she was very effective when making students straighten out so that they would cause less trouble. She was also the only one the office could send to deliver files and paperwork to Hibari because she was the only one who didn't seem to get bitten to death. Well they tried to send Alicia too, but she just flat out rejected helping.

Lying on the roof of the school reminded Hailey of her old life. She would often lie on the porch of her home and watch the clouds go by.

She raised a hand into the air, like she was trying to catch one of the clouds floating by. But when she closed her hand and lowered it, she saw that there was nothing. It was obvious that this was going to happen, but it still made her a little sad.

She glanced over at Hibari through the corner of her eyes. He was watching her. Hailey closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She let the breeze blow her worries away... At least for this small moment in time.

* * *

><p>The next morning Alicia and Hailey had a mission. Though Hailey wanted to see Gokudera transfer in and the volleyball match afterwards, she knew that this mission was important as well. She decided that they would at least make it in time to see Tsuna's and Gokudera's fight after school.<p>

However in their haste Alicia was almost shot; and Hailey, who pushed her out of the way, sprained her ankle in the process. She was now stuck with crutches. Hailey had to have her ankle treated on the way back, since she refused to go to the doctor because she still wanted to go to school.

As soon as David dropped them off Hailey hobbled away at a surprisingly fast pace. Alicia, who had stayed back to talk to David for a quick moment, lost sight of her sister and decided to try cutting through the school to get to the back.

On the way Alicia ran into Yamamoto.

"Oh? Kiyomizu-san, are you looking for your sister?" The always cheerful Yamamoto called.

"Huh? Oh…yeah." Alicia shrugged a little.

"I saw her heading around back. Come one! I'll show you!" Yamamoto grabbed Alicia's wrist and tugged her forward.

"Hey! Wait!" Alicia protested.

"It's fine, come on!" Yamamoto was completely misunderstanding Alicia's protests. He probably thought Alicia was saying she didn't want to waste his time or something.

When they reached the back of the school Alicia immediately spotted her sister sitting on the window sill next to Reborn.

The next thing she noticed was a couple sticks of dynamite flying at her and Yamamoto.

The oblivious boy picked one of the sticks up. "Oh? What game it this? It looks fun! Let us in too!"

"Eeeeeh! Y-Yamamoto! Risa-san!" Tsuna freaked. "Ah! I have to extinguish them!" He tried to put out the ends with his hands and screamed. "T-This won't work!"

"Fight with your dying will." Reborn shot Tsuna.

"Geez Hailey, don't go taking off like that," Alicia complained as she sauntered over to her sister; completely ignoring Tsuna ripping out of his clothes and extinguishing all of Gokudera's dynamite.

"Sorry, sorry!" Hailey smiled.

They looked back over at the fight to see Gokudera bowing by Tsuna. "I did not realize it! You are the one fit to become boss. Juudaime, I'll follow you anywhere! Ask whatever you want of me!"

Reborn hopped off the window sill and walked over to Tsuna. "The one who loses becomes the winner's subordinate. That's the family rule."

"Rule?" Tsuna asked.

"Actually, I never had the desire to become the tenth." Gokudera confessed. "I just wanted to see if the tenth really had the strength to become a suitable boss."

"Gokudera-kun…" Tsuna said softly.

"But you proved me wrong!" Gokudera looked up with excited puppy like eyes. "You are much more than I'd ever expected! You even risked your life to save me, even though I was your enemy! As Gokudera Hayato, I will give you my life!"

"Wait, that's troubling. Can't we just be regular classmates?" Tsuna said frantically.

"Absolutely not!" Gokudera narrowed his eyes, and a dangerous glint entered them.

Tsuna looked completely terrified.

"Gokudera became you subordinate because of your strength. Good job Tsuna," Reborn said.

Hailey hobbled over and reached into her bag. "Here you go Tsuna!" She handed him a spare uniform.

Tsuna blushed. "Thank you Hailey-san."

"Boo~!" Hailey pouted. "Tsuna-kun is supposed to call me Hailey-chan now!"

"I-I-I," Tsuna stuttered.

"Alicia! Tsuna-kun's being so mean! He won't call me Hailey-chan!"

Alicia sighed, exasperated. "And what am I supposed to do about it?"

"Alright, alright! I'll call you Hailey-ch-chan!" Tsuna cried.

"Yay!" Hailey cheered and hopped up and down on her one foot. Alicia looked around and noticed that Yamamoto had disappeared.

"Oh, no, no, these guys are cutting class" a gruff voice said behind them. They saw three ghetto seniors walking up to them.

"This requires some punishment."

"You're only allowed to cut starting senior year."

"How many teeth do you want broken?"

"What a pain," Alicia muttered.

"Looks like it's time to make myself useful," Gokudera had a shadow over his eyes.

"W-what?" Tsuna asked nervously.

"I'll totally annihilate them." Gokudera walked towards the delinquents with a couple handfuls of dynamite.

Meanwhile Alicia, Hailey, and Reborn disappeared, Hailey and Alicia because of a certain bloodthirsty prefect, and Reborn because…he's Reborn.

* * *

><p>The next day Hailey was visibly on edge. Even Alicia was tense. They kept to themselves as whispered only to each other all day. Alicia would scare away anyone who went near them.<p>

"Hailey you need to calm down," Alicia said quietly. She glared at a group of kids who started to walk up to them.

"I know," Hailey tried to smile, "It's just that…you know what's going to happen today and tomorrow. Even though I know it'll turnout alright, I still can't help but feel anxious. I really don't want any of them to get hurt."

"Like you said, it will be fine," Alicia soothed.

"I had really hoped that when Yamamoto showed up behind the school with you, that I had lost our bet and the story line was going to follow the anime for that part."

"Well, if we can be here then not everything is going to turn out the same."

"I know… I guess tomorrow, you'll go to the roof and I'll wait below right?"

"Sounds good," Alicia ruffled Hailey's hair a little. Hailey usually wore it in a high ponytail, but when she was nervous she would let it down. Alicia had her hair tied back in a low ponytail no matter what. The exception for both of them was dinner events, _then_ they would change up their hair style.

After P.E. ended the two peeked around the shed and saw Tsuna and Yamamoto talking. Yamamoto seemed really down, but after Tsuna said something he became really happy and reenergized.

The two looked at each other and shook their heads.

* * *

><p><strong>Hailey POV<strong>

After school ended I snuck up to the roof and watched the baseball field. I knew I couldn't interfere, but I felt like I at least had to watch.

Yamamoto is going to break his arm today. I wonder who takes him to the hospital.

I sat down by the railing and watched the baseball team's practice. It wasn't really that interesting, but I didn't move from my position.

I heard the roof door open and close.

"Hi Hibari-san." I glanced behind me for a second. I was sure he was going to call me an herbivore and ask why I was still on school grounds after hours, and possibly threaten to bite me to death. But instead he walked over and stood next to me for a while.

"You're rather dull today, herbivore."

I smiled half-heartedly. He called me herbivore, just like I thought he would.

"Do you think having knowledge of just about everything is a good thing?"

Hibari didn't answer.

"I don't really think so. I really wish I didn't have the knowledge of what is about to happen. It makes me feel responsible."

"Then why not change it," it wasn't a question.

"Because if I did, the consequences may be too great for me to fix and others will be dragged in as well."

"Hn," Hibari turned away, "It's your concern for others that make you and herbivore." He started to walk away.

I watched the prefect. "I'm concerned for you…"

Hibari's hand froze for a second as he reached for the door. But then he was gone, leaving me alone on the roof.

I turned back to the baseball field to see a single person practicing with a pitching machine. It's going to happen soon. I wonder how exactly he 'went too far'?

I glanced at a moving object on the other side of the field. I recognized Alicia running up to the school.

I saw Yamamoto look up and wave. He started walking toward the pitching machine to turn it off, but he wasn't looking where he was going.

He was still in the line of the ball!

If he did take a step to the side soon another ball was going to be shot out and at that range it would…

Alicia was going to hate herself for this later…

* * *

><p><strong>Alicia POV<strong>

Crap I left my phone at school! That thing has basically my whole life on it!

I jogged back to school. Hailey said she was going to stay behind and watch from the roof.

I ran past the gate and slowed down to a walk as I passed the baseball field. I heard the sounds of someone practicing and looked over to see Yamamoto.

He looked up as well and waved. He started to walk over to turn off the pitching machine, but he was still looking at me.

Idiot! The ball was going to hit him!

I didn't think, I just ran with all my might. I tackled him just as a ball was shot out. I managed to push Yamamoto out of the way, but the ball hit my foot.

Dang! That thing was flying so fast it flipped me over!

If that had hit Yamamoto at that short of a distance he… would have… broken… his... arm…

Shit.

* * *

><p><strong>Just to let you know, that wan't Hailey's confession that she loves Hibari. Hailey cares about everyone. Let me know what you think!<strong>

**So please review! Ciao**


	6. Chapter VI

**Thanks for those who reviewed! I apologize if this doesn't have as much as the main characters as you expected, but I did want to make it somewhat of an original story. I'm really happy for all the adds as well. But please review! I want to know your opinions!**

**That's all I have to say, enjoy.**

* * *

><p>Chapter VI<p>

**Everyone POV**

Hailey raced over to the baseball field. "Alicia! Yamamoto! Are you two alright?"

Alicia twisted her foot around. "Yeah I'm fine." She stood up. Since she didn't feel any pain, she assumed her fighting instincts had caused her to turn her foot and guide the ball away from her; which also explains the flip.

The twins ran over to Yamamoto. He sat up hold his wrist.

"Here, let me see it," Hailey pulled his arm away and pressed down on a few points. Yamamoto winced a little. Hailey sighed. "You sprained your wrist."

'_Crap! Carp! Crap! Crap! Crap! This is bad! Yamamoto didn't break his arm! I mean that's good- but what about the story!_' Hailey was panicking on the inside, but she didn't show it.

She smiled at Yamamoto. "Let's get you to a doctor so that they can wrap it properly."

Yamamoto smiled, but the twins could tell it was forced. "Ah thanks. I'm sorry for the trouble."

"No trouble, we're just glad you're alright!" Hailey and Alicia pulled him up.

"Yamamoto, I'm so sorry!" Alicia bowed. '_In more ways than one. If he doesn't become friends with Tsuna, not only will it mess up the story line, but Yamamoto is going to be alone for who knows how long!_'

Yamamoto laughed a little. "It's ok. It's my fault for not looking. I should be the one saying sorry. Also thank you very much! If you hadn't pushed me out of the way, then I could have been hurt even worse."

"Ha, ha, ha yeah…" Hailey and Alicia laughed nervously.

* * *

><p>Hailey and Alicia stayed in the waiting room as Yamamoto went to get his wrist taken care of. Not too long after they sat down, Yamamoto's dad came bursting through the door.<p>

"My son! Takeshi! Where is Takeshi!" Yamamoto's father yelled at the receptionist.

"Um, Mr. Yamamoto's dad sir," Hailey said timidly, walking up to the man.

Tsuyoshi Yamamoto calmed down a little when he turned to face Hailey. "Who are you?"

"Ano, my sister and I brought Yamamoto here."

Yamamoto's father bowed. "Thank you very much, my son is everything to me."

"Please don't bow!" Hailey cried frantically.

"Hi dad! I thought I heard you!" The group turned around to see Yamamoto walking toward them. His wrist was set and wrapped up, but not in the cast that Hailey and Alicia had seen in the manga.

"We'll take our leave now," Haile said quietly. The two girls bowed politely and turned to leave.

"What are we supposed to do?" Hailey asked as soon as they crossed the street away from the medical facility.

"Well, Yamamoto still looked pretty depressed. So maybe we didn't screw up the story line too much. I mean if he still jumps, then he got the better deal because he has a lighter injury."

Alicia was trying her best to stay positive. But in her heart she was worrying if she had just screwed up their chance of getting into heaven.

* * *

><p>The next day the two girls fidgeted while they waited in the classroom for school to start. The reset of the students continued on their normal day gossiping about this and that.<p>

"You think it's still going to happen?" Hailey asked tentatively.

Alicia glanced at the clock. "We'll find out in about another minute."

Tsuna glanced around the room and saw the twins huddling together and looking nervous again. He wondered what was wrong.

Suddenly the door slammed open. "Hey everyone! Yamamoto is about to jump off the roof!"

"Yamamoto from our class?" One of the boys asked.

"Him? That's impossible." Another boy said, smiling nervously.

"There are good pranks and bad pranks you know," a girl from Yamamoto's fan club said in disgust.

"When he stayed after school practicing yesterday, he went too far and injured his arm!"

Hailey glanced over at Tsuna to see him panicking and looking guilty.

"Anyway, go to the roof!" The class rushed out in a stampede, leaving the twins, Tsuna, and Kyoko behind.

"Tsuna-kun, Hailey-chan, Risa-chan! Let's go!"

"Uh yeah! Af-after I go to the bathroom…" Tsuna stuttered out.

Kyoko looked at the twins. Alicia sighed, then grabbed Kyoko's wrist and pulled her toward the roof. Hailey followed behind, but went down the stairs.

She wondered if she should feel relieved.

Hailey plodded over to the general area Tsuna and Yamamoto would land. She gazed up and saw that Tsuna and Yamamoto were talking. She watched as Yamamoto made to grab Tsuna and the two lost their balance, broke the railing, and fell over. Hailey watched as if in slow motion as Tsuna fell past a window and a silhouette of Reborn raised a gun and shot him.

Then time sped up again.

Hailey calculated the general area where the two boys would fall and walked over to it to make sure. As soon as the spring on Tsuna's head connected with the ground, Hailey took a generous side step to her left and the boys landed where she had been standing a second ago.

The flame on Tsuna's head wore off. "Yamamoto, are you ok?"

"Yeah," Yamamoto said as he sat up, "Tsuna! You're amazing."

"Eh!"

"Like you said. You have to do it with dying will. I don't know what I was thinking," Yamamoto rubbed the back of his head, "Nothing good comes out of my idiocy."

The two boys laughed.

"Good! I'm glad you value your life more!" Hailey said, startling them.

"Ah, Hailey-chan. How long have you been here?" Tsuna laughed nervously.

"I was standing here when you two landed right next to me!" Hailey said cheerily, like it was the nicest thing in the world.

"How's your wrist Yamamoto-kun?" Hailey's eyes softened.

Yamamoto smiled. "It'll be alright. Thanks for taking me to the doctors yesterday."

"No problem!" Hailey's smiled brightened again. "Oh and Tsuna, here's another uniform!"

Tsuna gratefully took the new set. As Hailey turned to leave he called out to her. "Ano, Hailey-chan!"

"Hmm?" Hailey turned around, still smiling.

"Why and how do you always have a spare uniform ready for me?" Tsuna asked nervously.

"Hmmm…It's my job to know! And I'll leave the rest as a secret!" Hailey put her index finger to her lips (in a shushing sort of action) and left.

* * *

><p>The next day Hailey and Alicia were finally approachable again. Students grouped around Hailey's desk and chattered with them during breaks. The two had to pull a Houdini during lunch so that they could get some peace and quiet.<p>

The climbed up to the roof and sat above the entrance. Well Hailey sat and Alicia flopped onto her back with her head resting on her arms.

"Haaaaah," Alicia sighed, "I guess everything went well. I was a little worried for a while."

"No kidding." Hailey looked a little tired.

"Hey, I'm a little fuzzy on what's supposed to happen next. Can you remind me?"

Hailey unwrapped her bento. "Um…let's see. Lambo and Bianchi is supposed to show up next."

"Ciaossu." Reborn hopped up beside the two.

"Yo," Alicia opened one eye to look at the small hitman.

"Hello Reborn! Want to eat lunch with us? I brought an extra bento just in case!" Hailey reached into her ever present bag and pulled out an extra lunch.

"Sure," Reborn sat cross-legged next to Hailey and opened up the lunch.

The door below them opened up and Tsuna, Yamamoto, and Gokudera walked out.

"Geez, this morning was a disaster. I got to class late and was scolded," Tsuna complained as he unwrapped his bento.

"Even though you were just helping that lost kid," Yamamoto agreed as he opened his own lunch.

"Why are you even here, baseball-nut?" Gokudera demanded.

"There's nothing wrong with that," Yamamoto turned to Gokudera and glanced up at the sky quickly, "eating lunch under the clear blue sky is the best."

"Un. Yeah, that's true." Tsuna nodded in agreement and opened the lid to his bento. But his relaxed expression quickly turned into a frown as a purple cloud came from his lunch and knocked three passing crows unconscious.

"T-This is…" Gokudera stared at the food in Tsuna's bento in horror.

Reborn handed back the empty lunch box to Hailey and walked over to the edge. "It's better if you don't eat that." He looked down to where the three boys were sitting. "You'll go straight to heaven in one bite."

"Reborn!" Tsuna said in a slightly demanding tone.

Reborn looked up at the other entrance. "Come out. I know you're there Bianchi."

The door swung aside to reveal the pretty Bianchi leaning against the doorframe.

Tsuna stood up in surprise. "Ah, the girl from this morning!"

Gokudera stared at the girl in horror. "B-big sister," he said and clutched his stomach.

"Sis…sister?" Tsuna cried in shock.

"It's been a while, Hayato," Bianchi said as she strolled over.

"Ciaossu, Bianchi."

"Reborn!" Bianchi blushed like a high school girl in love and started playing with a strand of hair. "I've come to take you back Reborn. Let's do some large scale jobs again. The place where you belong is in the dangerous and thrilling underworld."

"I told you before Bianchi, I have the job of raising Tsuna."

Bianchi raised a hand as if to wipe away tears and pointed at Tsuna. "Poor Reborn! That means that if the tenth doesn't die in some horrible accident, then Reborn will never be free!"

"What!" Tsuna shouted in more shock.

Bianchi started to walk away. "I'll wait for it. I'll kill the tenth- I mean, if the tenth dies I'll come to bring you back." Bianchi glanced back at Reborn, but she was now far enough away to see the other two who were with him.

"Yo! Bianchi," Hailey waved a little.

Alicia sighed. "Crap. She saw me didn't she?"

Bianchi looked furious. "Alicia Dimenticato!"

"Yup, you better get running! I don't want to get caught up in your fight!" Hailey said cheerily.

"Gee, what a kind sister you are," Alicia said sarcastically as she hopped off and landed next to Tsuna.

"Ah! Risa-san! Hailey-chan! What are you doing here?" Tsuna shouted.

Hailey swung her legs over the edge. "We came up here to eat lunch, just like you!" She watched as her sister dodged Bianchi's attacks.

"Why is Gokudera's sister attacking Risa-san?" Tsuna asked worriedly.

"Alicia told Bianchi that she didn't believe in the power of love!" Hailey answered.

"Love triumphs all!" Bianchi shouted.

"Love dies like everything else!" Alicia countered.

"Nothing can beat the power of love!"

Alicia dodged more purple goo. "Why should I care! We can't have it! It's not something Hailey and I are allowed to ever feel."

Bianchi froze. "Can't have it?...Not allowed to feel?"

Alicia stiffened.

"Sorry Bianchi, but that doesn't concern you!" Hailey hopped down from her perch and started to drag her sister away.

"Hold it!" Reborn jumped down in front of the three boys. "I've been thinking about it for a while, but didn't ask. Are you and your sister going to join another family? You two would make a powerful addition to Tsuna's family."

"Reborn! Don't recruit my friends!" Tsuna yelled.

"No." Hailey was still smiling, but her voice was cold.

"Hm. That was a quick response." Reborn pulled his fedora down a little bit.

"We'll be your allies. And we'll lend our assistance every now and then, but we aren't going to join Tsuna's family." With that Hailey and Alicia quickly stalked away.

Tsuna didn't know why, but Hailey's words had hurt him a little. He was glad that they weren't getting dragged into the mafia, but the way she said that… it was like she didn't want to be friends.

* * *

><p>After lunch the girls went to home economics. Alicia had spent the whole class apologizing to Hailey in an undertone, but her sister didn't blame her. They all had their slip of the tongue. That just meant they were human. They just had to make sure they were more careful.<p>

Hailey walked with the rest of the girls back to the classroom holding her slice of homemade cake. All the girls decided that today they were going to give their cakes to the guys. Alicia had made a rather plain looking chocolate cake, which she was already digging into.

Hailey had two beautiful strawberry cake slices. She carried happily along with the other girls toward the classroom. As the other girls filed in and held up their cakes for the boys to see, Hailey walked over to her desk and sat down. A group of guys crowded around her immediately.

"Hailey-chan, who are you giving your cake too?"

"Hailey-sama may I please have your humble cake?"

"Hailey-chan that looks so good! May I have a small piece?"

But Hailey pulled out her fork and took a bite. "Sorry boys! Strawberry cake is my favorite, and I made this cake so that I could eat something sweet while watching everyone else hand out their cakes!"

"Could we not possibly have that second slice?" The boys looked hopeful.

"Oh! That's right I have two!" Hope gleamed in all the boys' eyes.

'_Poor fools_,' Alicia thought. She shook her head at her sister's actions.

Hailey hopped of her desk and waved at her sister. "I'll be right back Risa-chan!" She completely ignored the disappointed boys she left behind.

Hailey cleaned up the plate while she walked, making it immaculate once again. When she reached her destination, she knocked a couple times before entering.

"Good afternoon Hibari-san!" She smiled.

Hibari spared her a glance before looking back down at his paperwork.

Hailey giggled a little.

"What do you want herbivore?"

"Well today in home economics we made cake, and I decided I wanted to give a slice to you!"

Hibari looked back up with an eyebrow slightly raised.

Hailey smiled. "When I thought about it, you were one of the few tolerable guys in this school. So I wanted to show my appreciation."

She set the cake down on his desk and turned to leave. "Oh!" Hailey looked back with her hand on the door frame, "and you don't worry about something as silly as poison. If I really wanted to get rid of you, I could just fight you!" Hailey scurried off after that.

Hibari smirked a little. He would definitely look forward to match against the twins. After all, if they could look straight into his eyes and feel absolutely no fear, then they _must_ be strong.

* * *

><p>That night Hailey and Alicia left with David to go on another mission. They're information network had caught wind of a lower mafia family creating a virus that could be contacted through breathing the air of someone infected.<p>

The Dimenticato Famiglia was the only ones who were willing to take responsibility for this mission, since they were unable to die and all. So they sent the black and white panthers so take care of it. However, the twins still had to be careful. Even if they couldn't die, it could become a big problem if one of them became out of commission for a while because of this virus. Also if they caught it, there was the possibility that they could unwittingly spread it.

The two broke into the enemy hideout easily. They quickly and silently incapacitated all the members of the family. The twins no longer wore their panther masks like they did before, instead they had goggles (similar to the one Lal Mirch uses). Hailey's had a dark blue visor and Alicia's was light blue. Hailey had spent the week leading up to the mission researching every member of the opposing family. She had looked up everyone associated, even their spouse and children. Nothing was left out. The layout of the hideout as well as all the other information Hailey had gathered was displayed on the visor.

The two split up when they climbed out of the lower area of the hideout. There were two laboratories and they had to reach both of them simultaneously so that they enemy didn't have time to hide virus and escape.

The lab that Hailey found was a bust. The whole east wing of the building was empty, except for a few stray guards keeping an eye out for intruders. Hailey knocked them all out as a precaution and moved to assist her sister.

Alicia meanwhile, found the lab filled with the families scientist. Men and women were looking at the computer screen and two clear containers. One container held red liquid, the other had green liquid. Alicia sent a signal to Hailey to let her know that she had found the virus.

She glanced around and saw three kids huddling in the corner. All of them were quaking in fear and looked like they wanted to cry.

Movement from the scientist drew Alicia's attention once again. She watched as one of the lab coat wearing freaks took a syringe and draw some of the red liquid. Another scientist pulled forward one of the children. The little girl struggled, but it was to no avail. One of the two remaining kids, a young boy, reached forward calling for his sister but was kicked back.

Alicia now had a full view of the computer screen and saw that it was separated into four segments. Each segment showed a child in a room, lying on a bed. All the children were obviously sick. On the top of each segment was a timer. Just then the kid with the most hours died.

It was too much. Alicia couldn't wait for Hailey. She slipped into the room quietly. Only the children saw her, but she motioned for them to stay quiet. She snuck up behind the scientist dragging the little girl away and chopped the back of his neck, knocking him unconscious.

The other scientists turned around, but Alicia was already at their throats. She took them down quickly, but she didn't notice the scientist with the syringe was coming up behind her.

"Alicia!"

Someone pushed Alicia out of the way.

Hailey.

It was Hailey.

And the contents of the syringe had been injected into her thigh.

* * *

><p><strong>Oh dear, poor Hailey! Well that's the end of this chapter for now. Please review! I want to know how you felt about it! I'll hold off my next chapter till then...maybe...probably not...ok so I won't. Ha ha! ^^"<strong>

**Hope you liked it!**


	7. Chapter VII

**I have returned! Thank you to those who reviewed. I decided not to hold off this chapter because of the faithful few who do review, as it would be unfair to them.**

**I hope you like this chapter! Enjoy!**

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><p>Chapter VII<p>

Hailey ignored the on slaughter of pain from the virus and gave the last scientist standing a well-placed round house kick. She stumbled a little, but remained standing. Hailey walked over to the set of cabinets and opened each one till she found what she was looking for. She pulled out an oxygen mask and placed it over her mouth and nose so that she wouldn't breathe on anyone.

"Hailey…" Alicia said numbly.

"It's fine. I took out the rest of the guards. So let's take care of all these children alright. It looks like there's enough of the antidote for all of them."

Alicia frowned. She calculated that, sure enough, there was enough of the cure for the six children. "But, what about you?"

"I'm going to collect all the information for this virus and its cure, and then I'll send it to Ali so that she can make enough of the antidote for me." Hailey walked unsteadily to the computer. "Please just save these kids."

Alicia wanted to argue, but she knew it was useless. Hailey was extremely stubborn when it came to children. She grabbed a few syringes and collected some of the light green liquid.

The kids shrank away from Alicia when she walked over. The boy stood protectively in front of his sister, though he was tearing.

Alicia sighed. "I'm not going to hurt you. We need to make sure you take the antidote in case you were infected with the crap those mad scientists made. My sister and I came to help. We'll take you somewhere safe after this, alright?"

The little girl studied Alicia and Hailey. Then she slowly stepped out from behind her brother and held up her arm.

Alicia smiled softly. "So what's your name little one?" She asked as she gave the little girl the cure.

"83019," the little girl said softly.

"I said your _name_, not the identification number those freaks gave you." Alicia reached for the other two kids.

"…Alison…Alison Brier."

"That's a pretty name," Hailey said as she walked up behind her sister. She patted the little girl's brown hair and looked into her green eyes. "We have a good friend named Alison, but we call her Ali."

"So how about you two?" Alicia asked as she tossed the syringes.

"I'm Zach Brier." This boy had sandy brown hair and strong green eyes, like his sister.

"I'm Michael O'Connor." This boy looked like he was a year younger than the other boy and had auburn colored hair.

Hailey lead them out of the awful room. "I suppose Zach is short for Zachary?"

The sandy blond haired boy nodded wearily.

Hailey led them to the other children. She went inside alone to treat each of them so that her sister wouldn't contract the illness through breathing the same air. Hailey put all three of the kids onto one gurney so that they could be transported easier. But it was putting a lot of strain on her system. When she rejoined her sister, Hailey was panting pretty hard.

"Big sister, what's going to happen to you?" Alison asked.

"I'll be fine kiddo," Hailey ruffled her hair a little. But as she tried to take another step she fell onto her side.

"Hailey!" Alicia rushed over. But a set of footsteps called for her attention. Alicia stood up and took a defensive stance in front of the group.

But to her relief it was David who rounded the corner. "Hey, everything has been taken care of. Good job you two- What happened to Hailey!"

"Hailey got injected with the virus and there was only enough of the cure to save these kids. Hailey sent the information of the virus and the cure to Ali but…"

David pulled Hailey onto his back. "Come on everyone. Let's go." He led the way out of the building, where the met the backup squad who had already taken the enemy family into custody. David was about to send the six kids away when Hailey stopped him.

"Wait…David…Can…can we please…take these kids back with us?" Hailey panted, "I want…to make sure they…they have a better home…"

"Hailey, I don't think that's a good idea," Alicia said. Her voice was somewhat strained from worry.

"Please!" Hailey begged.

David studied the six children. If Hailey insisted on taking them in, then that means she found information that their parents had sold them. "Alright."

The nine of them got into a van and pulled away.

Alicia, David, and the children went back to the apartment, while Hailey was placed in isolation. She had to live in a separate house that was built especially for her until she was given the cure.

Alicia had wanted to stay by her side, but Hailey forced her to go back to school to keep an eye on things. They had already missed two day because of this mission, and they still had their main trial to take care of.

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><p><strong>Alicia POV<strong>

This was so _stupid_!

Why did I have to go to school when Hailey is suffering like that?

I walked over to my seat and sat down.

"Good morning Risa-san," Tsuna said cheerily to me.

What on earth was so good about it? But it wasn't Tsuna's fault, so I shouldn't get mad at him. "Uh, hi…"

"Oh! What's wrong Risa?" Yamamoto asked.

"Nothing wrong with me," I told them.

"Where's whitey?" Gokudera asked off handedly.

I stiffened. "Uh…she's sick."

"Then we should visit later," Reborn hopped onto my desk.

"No!" I said hurriedly, but this made Reborn look at me suspiciously. "I mean, she's contagious so you _really_ shouldn't visit her or you'll catch it."

"I'm sure we'll be fine!" Yamamoto smiled.

"No. She doesn't want to worry anyone. You'll make her upset if she lets you guys see her in that state." I don't know how to handle these situations. Usually Hailey will think of something.

"How bad is it?" Reborn questioned.

"She'll be fine once she get the-the medicine." I closed my eyes and rested my chin on my palm so that I wouldn't have to look any of them in the eye.

"Hm." Reborn grunted. I felt the presence of the small hitman disappear.

After school _finally_ ended I jogged over the house Hailey was being confined in. I wasn't allowed to go in, but every day I would go and watched her through the glass wall in the back. The children were allowed inside to visit Hailey, since they already took the antidote. I was happy that Hailey had some company, but I can't deny that I'm extremely envious too. David would go in to take care of Hailey, but he always wore a hazmat suit. I couldn't go in because they were trying to decrease the exposure.

Today is the third day Hailey's been sick.

I stared at her through the bullet proof and earthquake resistant glass wall.

God I'm such an idiot. I saw that guy draw some of that virus into a needle, so why wasn't I more wary of him?

"She looks like she's in a pretty bad state," a voice squeaked beside me.

"Tell me about it," I said sarcastically.

Wait… I looked down and nearly jumped out of my skin.

"Reborn! What the hell!"

Hailey looked over slowly and smiled. "Hi Reborn. Thanks for visiting."

Reborn pulled his fedora over his eyes. "So this is why you really didn't want Tsuna to come see Hailey."

Hailey's smile softened. "Yeah, please don't bring him. I don't want him to see me in this state. He'll worry too much."

"Hailey…" I choked, "I'm _so_ sorry. I-"

"Idiot." That one word had enough force to feel like a spear stabbing me in the head. "I don't need an apology."

"But I'm your big sister; I should be looking out for you!"

"Nonsense, just because you came out a minute earlier doesn't make you responsible for my safety. We're twins. We look out for each other, and we protect each other _equally_. You've already protected me so much that even if I was shot with a hundred bullets it wouldn't be enough."

"Please don't get shot with a hundred bullets," I said, completely dreading the idea.

Hailey chuckled. "But you get my point."

"…Yeah." I smiled a little.

Hailey turned back to Reborn. "I'm assuming Alicia didn't ask, and I can't get to any of my information networks, so can you tell me what's happened while we were gone Reborn?"

Oops…I forgot…

Reborn looked up. "I had Tsuna, Gokudera, and Yamamoto face off against Hibari."

Hailey giggled a little, but it sent her into a coughing fit. "Sorry. Ha, ha. That sounded like fun. I wish I could have seen Hibari's reaction."

Reborn smirked. "Also I-pin has come to live with Tsuna while she trains. I'm sure you're already aware of any information about her."

Hailey smiled a little. "Yeah."

"Hm. Well I assume you'll be back on your feet in a few days. I'll check on you again later."

"Bye," Hailey said softly and Reborn disappeared quickly.

A second later I learned why he left in such a rush.

"Nooooo! My poor and precious Hailey!" A horribly familiar sob came into hearing.

I could already feel a vein pulsing in irritation.

I turned around slowly and sure enough, there was Ali on her hand an knees sobbing while staring at Hailey.

I sighed. At least this meant Hailey was going to get the cure.

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><p><strong>Everyone POV<strong> – A few days later.

Hailey was sitting on her bed back at the apartment. All six kids were sitting around her, except for the little girl who sat on her lap. Hailey was reading a story to them and sharing her get well presents.

Hailey had all the members of the Dimenticato Famiglia wrapped around her little finger before she left. So of course when they heard the news that their precious little Hailey had gotten sick, they sent as many sweets and presents as they could.

However they were not allowed to send lemons. Why? Well…

_Flashback:_

_Hailey woke up a few hours after taking the shot. She already felt much better. She sat up as Ali and David walked in. They had already transported her back to her room._

"_Hey sweetie," Ali said kindly, "How are you feeling?"_

"_Much better!" Hailey smiled._

_David smiled as well. _"_That's great!" _

"_Ok, I just need to tell you the side effects of the virus and cure. You won't be able to get sick from that virus ever again, but if you come into contact with lemons at any point for the next month or so, you can go through a relapse."_

"_You're kidding me. Lemons?" Hailey stared at the two of them skeptically._

"_Yeah, it sounds silly. But you need to take this seriously." David said earnestly._

_Ali nodded. "For some reason lemons will set off a relapse, which will include difficulty breathing, fever, and heart palpitations."_

"_Ugh. It seems I've really got the short end of the stick on this one." Hailey mumbled._

"_Just be careful," Ali insisted._

_Hailey sighed. "Alright."_

Hailey sighed again at the memory of the two adults' warning. She glanced around at the kids.

The six children were currently sharing the apartment across from Hailey and Alicia, but they spent most of their time with the twins. Originally, they were very wary of Alicia, but all of them took to Hailey right away. The three children, who Hailey had given the antidote, thought that she was their guardian angel. Hailey had to convince them that she was just a normal person.

Since Hailey was still stuck at home for the moment, she started teaching the kids Japanese. Actually, the kids were picking up the new language very well. Hailey hoped that they could go to school and make friends.

When Hailey finished the book she was reading to the kids, she sensed the presence of Reborn nearing and sent the kids to play in their room for a while.

Just as she predicted, the little hitman hopped onto the railing of her balcony the second the door closed. "Ciaossu Hailey."

"Hi Reborn. So what's up?"

"Tsuna is facing Sasagawa Ryohei in the boxing ring today."

"Is that so?" Hailey smiled.

"I came to ask your opinion."

"I don't know why. You usually do whatever you want anyways."

Reborn smirked. "I want to know what you think about having Kyoko's brother join Tsuna's family."

"Well, I believe he'll make a fine addition. He's physically very strong, which will be a great asset. Also his overwhelming stupidity and extreme positive attitude will become a big help for Tsuna and the rest of his family in the future. I think he and Tsuna will be the only guardians who can really handle Hibari."

"That's what I thought. I see you know I'm going to recruit Hibari into Tsuna's family as well."

"Hmm? I thought that was obvious, since you had Tsuna face off against him."

Reborn's smirk grew. "I'll be making Alicia watch."

"That's fine."

"Also, Tsuna and company are going to visit sometime on the weekend."

"Ara! Really? Why?"

"Alicia had to tell them that you were sick, so they want to see how you're doing. And since you're no longer on the verge of death, it's safe for the others to see you."

Hailey laughed. "Ok, bring whoever. I don't mind. I'm nearly ready to go out and about soon here anyways."

"Right, Ciao."

"Bye-bye!" Hailey waved as Reborn used Leon as a hand glider and jumped off the edge.

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><p>Just as Reborn promised, at the end of the school day he forced Alicia to watch Tsuna's match against Ryohei. And he accomplished this task with the help of Bianchi.<p>

"What…the…hell!" Alicia yelled as she booked it as fast as she could out of the school. Bianchi was hot on her trail with dishes full of that horrible looking poison cooking. Alicia was so busy trying to evade Bianchi that she let her guard down and got caught in a rather simple rope trap set my Reborn.

"Mission accomplished. Thank you Bianchi." The tiny hitman said as he dragged Alicia into the boxing room. Bianchi giggled and followed Reborn inside.

"Reborn! Why am I here? Let me go! I wanna go home!" Alicia struggled against the ropes binding her arms and ankles.

"Hailey said it was fine to make you watch Tsuna's and Sasagawa's boxing match." The baby hitman squeaked.

Alicia dead panned.

"You should stop struggling. I'll release you if you swear to stay."

"Fine, whatever. Since Hailey said to and all," Alicia grumbled reluctantly.

Reborn cut the ropes and Alicia stood up and brushed herself off. Soon after the rest of the group showed up.

"Hi Risa-chan!" Kyoko said happily as she walked over. A girl with brown hair in a ponytail walked over with her.

"Hahi! Who are you?" the girl asked asked as she walked over to the group.

'_Ugh. The other annoying girl arrived._' Alicia thought. She and Hailey had been avoiding meeting Haru at all costs. "Uh…Hi. I'm Kiyomizu Alicia."

"It's very nice to meet you Kiyomizu-san! I'm Miura Haru!"

"Yeah I know," Alicia muttered under her breath.

"What's that?" Haru asked.

"Nothing! Nothing! Anyways don't call me Kiyomizu-san, it'll be more confusing when my sister is with me."

"Hahi! Sister?"

"Risa-chan has a twin sister called Hailey-chan!" Kyoko told Haru.

"Risa-chan?" Haru asked confused.

"Hailey-chan gave her sister a nickname because her English name was difficult for all of us to say."

"Ooh! Alright!" Haru smiled.

"Who is this to the extreme?" Ryohei yelled as he walked over.

Kyoko giggled. "Big brother, these are my friends Haru-chan and Risa-chan. Hailey-chan is Risa-chan's sister, but she's still out sick."

"It's very nice to meet you! I'm Sasagawa Ryohei and my motto is: EXTREME!"

Alicia sweat dropped a little. This guy was more obnoxious up close.

Finally Tsuna arrived and the match began.

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><p>The next day Dino came to visit Hailey while everyone was at school.<p>

David pooped his head into Hailey's and Alicia's apartment. "Hey Hailey, the Chiavarone boss and a few of his subordinates have come to visit you."

Hailey was laughing and watching the kids play from the table. "Okay, you can let them in."

"Yo, white panther." Dino waved as he walked in with his three subordinates trailing behind him.

"Hi Dino. How's it going?"

"We're all good. What's with all the kids?" Dino stepped back as Alison and Michael ran past playing tag.

"Oh, we found them on our last mission and I couldn't just leave these kids behind. Besides they were just too dang cute!" Alex (one the kids in the isolated rooms) with his short chestnut brown hair came over and flopped down onto Hailey's lap.

"Well, I heard you were sick, so I thought I should go visit you."

"Hmmm, Reborn called you over from Italy and you were bored and needed something to do while you waited for Tsuna to get out of school so that you could meet him for the first time." It wasn't a question. Hailey could read Dino pretty easily.

Dino laughed bashfully.

"It's ok Dino. I'm glad you came to visit!"

Alicia walked over and held Hailey's hand as she shyly gazed up at Dino and his subordinates. "Sissy who is that?"

"Those guys?" Hailey jabbed her thumb at Dino and company, "The one in the ridiculous green coat and the goofy grin is Dino. The guys in the suits behind him work for Dino."

"Hey, I think my coat looks pretty cool on me!"

"And I think pigs really can learn to fly."

Dino rolled his eyes.

"Chill Dino, I'm just teasing you. Anyways kiddo, this lug is really nice. He'll be just like a big brother for all of you. Although you should be careful when none those suit guys who work for him aren't around, because then Dino gets to be _reeeeaaally_ clumsy," Hailey whispered the last part. The children giggled.

Alison took a step forward, but didn't let go of Hailey's hand. She bowed a little. "It's nice to meet you Dino nii-san. My name is Kiyomizu Alison."

Just before Dino came up to visit, the kids had asked if they could all be a part of Hailey's and Alicia's family and change their last names to Kiyomizu. Hailey and David couldn't refuse their puppy eyes, so there was now nine Kiyomizu's living on the top floor.

Dino, being a kid at heart, played and got along well with all the children, which gave Hailey a break and a chance to relax. So she chatted with Romario about this and that and sipped her tea. A few hours later Dino was waving good-bye and promising to visit again later.

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><p><strong>Alicia POV<strong> - The next day

Ah thank god, it's finally lunch break.

I crossed my arms behind my head and strolled down to the courtyard. I found a secluded area and decided to take a short nap on a nearby bench.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

There wasn't much to do without Hailey being here.

No.

I take that back.

With watching Tsuna and his friends, I had plenty to do.

Yesterday Dino tested Yamamoto and Gokudera to make sure they were trustworthy subordinates for Tsuna, and Hailey made me tag along just so that I could give Tsuna a spare uniform so that he didn't walk across town in his underwear.

My ear twitched as I heard a girlish male voice screaming. The vocal pattern indicated that whoever it was, was running back and forth.

"Che. Can't I have some peace and quiet?"

Was that the sound of a gunshot? The voice changed into a rougher tone.

I opened my eyes and saw Tsuna in green boxers and in dying will mode jumping to catch a lime green lunch box. He landed a few seconds later in front of me.

I sighed heavily. So that's why Hailey made me bring another spare uniform today. Dang. How does she remember all these tiny in between details?

"Tsuna!" Yamamoto called from the roof.

"Great job, Juudaime!" Gokudera yelled, leaning over the top of the fence.

Ryohei crossed his arms. "Nice catch, Sawada!"

I could see a small dot of a Lambo who had climbed up the fence like Gokudera.

"Thank goodness," Tsuna said softly.

Forget getting up. That requires too much effort. Instead I threw Tsuna's neatly folded uniform at his head.

"Wha-!" He shouted in surprise and looked around. "Ah! Risa-san!"

"So noisy. Hailey told me to give that to you."

Tsuna laughed nervously. "Please tell her I said thank you again."

I waved it away.

Tsuna changed into the uniform and sat next to me, holding the lunch box in his lap. "I wonder if this is the nitroglycerin…"

"It's your lunch," I said firmly.

"How do you know?"

"Hailey told me."

"How does she know? She's not even here!"

"Hailey and I know a lot of things. Like we told you, it's our job."

Tsuna looked at me questioningly, but I didn't say any further. Luckily the other three boys and Lambo walked over before Tsuna could question me anymore.

I sat up. I guess I'm not going to get any sleep.

"Hi Risa!" Yamamoto waved.

"What did you come over to bother the tenth for?" Gokudera asked grumpily.

Must. Control. Temper. Do _not_ punch, kick, or throw any of them. "Shut up octopus head, I was already here when Tsuna jumped down from the roof."

"Now, now," Yamamoto tried to ease the tension, "So which one is in that box?"

"I don't know yet," Tsuna said nervously as he unwrapped the lunch box.

I got up and started to walk away, but something tripped me.

"Ok, that's my breaking point!" I shouted, though it was a little muffled by the ground. I looked around as I started to push myself up. " Reborn why the hell did you trip me?"

A door in a tree slid open to reveal Reborn. "Because I needed you to stick around." The rope retracted into a smaller hole below the door.

I stood up and brushed myself off. Damn Reborn liked Hailey, but saw fit to torment me.

"That's because I like Hailey more than you."

"Don't read my mind damn it!" I could feel a vein pulsing and my eyebrow twitching. "So what do you want?"

Reborn hopped onto Yamamoto's shoulder. "We're all going to visit Hailey tomorrow and we need you to show us the way."

"Huh? You have your own information network. Go find out yourself." I can't believe he tripped me for that.

"These guys are bad at following directions. It will work out better if someone could just lead the way."

"Hailey's still recovering. I don't think it will be a good idea to have too many loud people bothering her." I rubbed my shoulder and tried to loosen the muscle.

"Hailey said it was alright and I could bring anyone I wanted."

I nearly fell back to the ground.

Why Hailey? _Why_?

"Tch. Fine! I'll meet you all at the front of the school gate tomorrow at noon." I stomped off before I could be bothered with anything else.

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><p><strong>I've noticed that of late I've become a lot more cheerful. I think it started when I first put up this story and got reviews!<strong>

**This has turned out to be a lot of fun!**

**Please review and let me know what you think! I like to know other peoples' opinions as well!**


	8. Chapter VIII

**Hi, so here is chapter eight to Twin Dilemma. I'm hoping everyone likes it. But I really have no idea because i hardly get and REVIEWS! So please review after reading!**

**Voila**

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><p>Chapter VIII<p>

Alicia stood, with an eye twitching, in front of the large group that had gathered in front of Nami Jr. High waiting for her to lead the way to Hailey.

"Oi." She said, barely containing her irritation, "Why are there so many people?"

The group consisted of: Kyoko, Haru, Yamamoto, Gokudera, Tsuna, Ryohei, Lambo, I-pin, Reborn, Shamal, and Bianchi.

It was just the normal group, but it probably seemed like more than necessary because Gokudera was shouting at Lambo and Yamamoto. Lambo was shouting, crying, and occasionally pulling out a bomb. Haru was yelling at Gokudera for hurting Lambo. Ryohei was yelling about something extreme. And no one was calming them down effectively.

"That's it, I'm leaving." Alicia turned around and started to walk away.

"Ah, please wait Risa-san!" Tsuna called after her. He ran forward, and to Alicia's displeasure the group followed as well.

"Tolerate. Just tolerate it. It's for Hailey. Just keep repeating that. It's for Hailey," Alicia muttered under her breath.

"Sorry Risa-san," Tsuna said apologetically.

Alicia heaved a sigh. She smiled a little and ruffled Tsuna's hair. "It's fine. You guys are always like this, so I should be used to it. I'm just a bit high strung because the extra work load Hailey and I are getting."

Tsuna looked at Alicia curiously. "Do you have a part-time job?"

Alicia gazed at Tsuna thoughtfully. She did so for so long that Tsuna started to fidget under her stare. Alicia smirked a little. "Yeah, you could say that."

The group walked for a while chattering about nothing and yelling every so often. At some point it became too much for Alicia again and she started walking while rubbing her temples and repeating "It's for Hailey" under her breath again. And when that wasn't enough, she stopped and slammed her head against a nearby wall several times before walking again.

"Ano, Risa-san…How much longer till we get there?" Tsuna asked. He could feel Alicia getting dangerously close to her maximum boiling point.

Alicia looked around. "It's that building straight ahead."

Kyoko, Haru, Tsuna, Lambo, and I-pin gaped at their own levels of disbelief and awe.

Yamamoto whistled. "Wow, you guys are rich huh?"

"No duh baseball idiot," Gokudera grumbled.

Alicia kept walking. She looked back at the group and analyzed them critically. "Just to be safe. None of you brought any lemons with you right?"

"Ano…Why lemons?" Tsuna asked.

Alicia paused. "Hailey and the kids have become…_severely_ allergic to them."

"Hahi! Kids?"

"Yeah, we took in some orphans. They might be a little scared and have a hard time trusting you at first so please _try_ and not upset them." Alicia eyes Gokudera, Ryohei, and Bianchi. Then turned around and walked into the building.

"Good afternoon Kiyomizu-sama. I'm so glad to see you come back," The receptionist said in a sickeningly sweet voice. "Oh and I see you brought friends."

"Save it. You don't really like me, and I detest you. Now move on," Alicia said coldly as she walked past, without even sparing a glance at the man. The group hurried after her, before the receptionist could do anything.

"So which number is your room?" Haru asked as they stepped out of the elevator.

Alicia yawned. "All of it."

"Hahi! What do you mean?"

"We own the whole top floor so technically all of it is our room. However, this is the one Hailey and I am currently living in." Alicia pushed the door open. The same teens who gawked at the building gazed at the apartment in the same awe and shock.

The group turned to see Hailey talking animatedly on the phone upstairs. She didn't seem to notice them. Actually she was frowning a little and rubbing her temples.

"I know their requesting us specifically, but I've only gotten my basic motor functions back…I'm not sure that's possible…They'll be able to tell the difference, they're not stupid…I can give you the information you need instead….We also have our main mission to worry about you know….be careful if they find out that we're-"

"Hailey I brought company!" Alicia shouted up.

Hailey looked down in shock. "Marshall, I'll have to call you back. It seems I have some visitors…Not those types of visitors you idiot! Normal people! Ish- ok not like what you were thinking anyways…yeah…..yeah….I know….don't be a mom….ok….bye!"

Hailey walked down the stairs to the group. Though they noticed that she was leaning heavily on the railing and walking rather slow.

"You shouldn't be walking so much yet," Alicia scolded.

Hailey laughed a little and walked over to the couch. "Yeah, but the kids wanted to play a few games."

"Speaking of the kids where are they?" Alicia glanced around the room.

"They all went down for a nap about an hour ago." Hailey turned to the rest of the group, "Hey everyone! Thanks for visiting!"

"Hi Hailey!" Yamamoto smiled and waved.

Hailey laughed. "You guys can come over. I'm not going to bite."

Kyoko and Haru giggled and sat down by Hailey. Tsuna and the rest followed.

"I know! I'll make some tea!" Hailey started to get up again.

"Hold it!" Alicia pushed her back down, "I'll do it. _You_ rest." Alicia walked away grumbling.

"The kids and I made some cookies today! Could you bring them over?" Alicia waved to let Hailey know she heard.

"I'm glad you're feeling better now Hailey-chan," Kyoko said smiling.

Yamamoto nodded. "Yeah, it's not as fun around school unless everyone is there!"

"Oh, I'm sure I don't make that much of a difference," Hailey giggled.

But Tsuna noticed that she had frown just a tiny bit when Yamamoto had said that. Perhaps it was his imagination.

Hailey turned to Tsuna. "So Tsuna, have any interesting dreams lately," she asked slyly. Reborn smirked.

Tsuna felt dread as he remembered the dream he had last night. But how could Hailey possibly know? He laughed nervously. "Not really Hailey-chan."

A sudden crash let the group know that Lambo was running around.

Alicia yelled and cursed, but Hailey just laughed. "Hey you two! Come over here for a little bit."

Lambo paused and looked at the white haired girl.

"I'll give you this lollipop…" Hailey held up a sucker.

Lambo's eyes glittered and he jumped up onto Hailey's lap. "Yay candy! The great Lambo-sama wants it!"

"Lambo! Be gentler, Hailey-chan is still recovering," Tsuna scolded.

"It's fine," Hailey laughed. She handed him the lollipop and motioned for I-pin to join her as well. I-pin being much more considerate hopped up gently and sat on the arm of the couch next to Hailey. Said girl giggled and handed a sucker to I-pin as well.

"Aaaah! You two are so _cute_!" Hailey hugged and snuggled the two little ones.

Alicia returned with tea and cookies, so Hailey passed Lambo and I-pin to Haru and Kyoko. They all sipped their tea and chattered about random topics. Gokudera would yell at Yamamoto often and Tsuna would have to calm him down. If Tsuna wasn't very successful then Reborn would kick him.

At some point while they were talking more peacefully, Alison walked out of a room downstairs crying silently.

"Alison! What's wrong?" Hailey asked immediately. The group turned around and saw the little girl. Alison broke into full out wailing and ran over to Hailey's lap. Hailey picked her up and hugged her, rubbing comforting circles on Alison's back. "What is it sweetie? A nightmare?"

The little girl nodded into Hailey shoulder. "Big brother Zach and I we-were i-in that bad roo-oo-oo-oo-oom, and the bad ma-an was ta-a-king me-e-e away. I saw mo-o-mmy and daddy, but mo-o-o-ommy lau-au-aughed and s-said I was just a toy for the-the bad man. And then I ran away be-e-cause I was sca-ar-ared. And I saw a white roo-oom and you were in-in it big sister. But you-ou had a lot of tubes sti-i-icking ou-out o-of you and a m-mask over your face and you-ou looked like you had a-a-a owwie. When I touched your hand it was really cold and-"

Hailey silenced the little girl by hugging her a little tighter and shushing her. "It's ok. It's ok. Nothing bad is going to happen to you."

Alison pulled back a little and looked between Hailey and Alicia. "Big sisters you're not going anywhere are you? You promise to stay with us forever."

It was probably only Reborn, Tsuna, Bianchi, and Shamal who noticed the slight stiffening from the twins when the little girl had asked that question.

Hailey hugged Alison close again. "We'll be here as long as you need us, we promise." Alison seemed to calm down and fell back asleep clinging to Hailey.

"That's very kind of you," Kyoko said softly.

"Kind? I think it's rather cruel. Making a promise like that…we can't always be there for them you know," Alicia said bitterly.

"The promise was as long as they needed us. I said nothing about forever," Hailey countered softly.

"Do you want me to carry her back to bed for you?" Kyoko asked.

"Don't bother," Alicia said with a yawn, "Once any of the kids get like that, they won't let go till after they wake up."

Hailey laughed. "Yeah, after the first day I came home all six kids woke up from a nightmare and ended up sleeping on my bed!"

"Aaah! Haru thinks that's so cute." Haru smiled at the little girl.

"So Tsuna what's been going on with all of you? I heard Dino came to visit and Shamal being here must mean you got some really bad disease. And Alicia came home grumbling about something that happened yesterday. What happened?"

"Speaking of Shamal," Alicia interrupted, "Why is he here?"

"I asked him to check up on Hailey," Reborn told them.

"Anything for the beautiful seniorita!" Shamal jumped towards Hailey,

"Another step forward and I'll blow your brains out," Hailey said with a dangerous smile. Shamal stopped in his tracks to observe Hailey, but then Alicia kicked him in the face.

"Stay away from my sister you perverted bastard," Alicia growled.

Hailey ignored the scene. "Hey Kyoko, Haru? You like cake right?" Both girls nodded enthusiastically and giggled. "Well there's this really great cake store that just opened up and they are having a sale!"

"Ooh! That sounds great!" Kyoko said excitedly.

"Alicia can show you the way if you like."

"Could she?" Both girls asked eagerly.

Hailey giggled. "It's no problem. Alicia! You can stop killing him now. Can you show Kyoko and Haru the new cake place?"

Alicia, who was wringing Shamal by his collar, looked up with an eyebrow raised and dropped the man. "Fine."

"Should we bring some back?" Kyoko stood up and asked.

"No, no! It's fine, David said he'd bring me some later when he came back." Hailey smiled sweetly.

Kyoko and Haru cheerfully said their good-byes and followed Alicia out of the apartment.

"So Reborn, why did you want to come over?" Hailey asked as soon as the door closed, turning back to the rest of the group. Tsuna perked up, he was wondering why as well.

"I want you and your sister to reconsider joining Tsuna's family," Reborn stated.

Hailey sighed. "I believe we already went through this Reborn."

"What, is the Vongola not good enough for you whitey?" Gokudera demanded.

"The Vongola are good, but my sister and I are perfectly fine with where we are."

Reborn stared at Hailey critically. "At Nono's party you said it was your mission to protect Tsuna, did you not?"

Tsuna stiffened a little. Mission to protect him? But Hailey-chan and Risa-san were here long before Reborn came…

"I did."

"Then wouldn't it make your mission easier if you were close to Tsuna?"

"It probably would."

"Being a part of his famiglia would provide just that."

Hailey smiled sadly. "Let you tell you something about my family. The day we arrive here we are given two main missions. The first mission differs from person to person, but the second mission is the same for everyone. Do you know what that mission is?"

Reborn frowned a little. "Your family is shrouded in secrets. I doubt anyone other than them would have that information."

Hailey looked down at the little girl she was hugging and brushed her bangs out of her eyes. "If you can figure out what our second mission is, then you can come and ask us again."

Reborn sighed. "Very well."

"I'm sorry Tsuna," Hailey looked up at the three teenagers. Her eyes looked sad, guilty, and apologetic.

"What- Ah- No no! It's ok, I'm glad you're not getting dragged into Reborn's mafia nonsense. Ano…what's wrong?" Hailey had started giggling at the part before last.

Hailey stifled the rest of her giggles the best she could before looking back up. "It's nothing. Don't worry about it. Would you guys like to stay for dinner?"

"Ah that's ok! We don't want to trouble you!" Tsuna said immediately.

"It's no trouble! Besides I like the company and the kids will have someone new to play with." Hailey smiled again and stood up.

The sudden movement woke Alison. She rubbed her eyes and looked up at Hailey. "Hi Sissy."

Hailey kissed her forehead. "Hi sleepy. Can you wake your brothers up for me?"

Alison nodded blearily and Hailey set her down gently. The little girl slowly walked towards the room where the others were still napping while rubbing an eye and yawning.

Hailey walked over to the kitchen and started to pull out ingredients. Tsuna and Reborn sat at the counter and watched Hailey cooked while Yamamoto and Gokudera played with the kids. Well, Gokudera actually got pulled into it when the boys demanded that he played with them till Gokudera finally agreed. Alison decided to watch Hailey as well, so Hailey picked her up and set her on Tsuna's lap.

"Damn brats. I thought they were supposed to be scared of strangers," Gokudera grumbled.

Hailey laughed. "I've told them a lot about you guys, so of course they wouldn't be scared of you!"

Alison fiddled with a puzzle Hailey had given her while Hailey cooked. "Silly big brothers."

"Hey Hailey-chan, you seem to be moving much better than earlier," Tsuna commented as he watched her shuffle around the kitchen, moving heavy pots and flipping the contents in a frying pan.

"Yeah," Hailey giggled, "I may not be able to do anything like running or fighting, but I've been able to do everything else for a while now!"

"Then why were you moving so slowly and unsteadily before?"

"So that Hailey and David could give me treats and do my chores for me!"

Tsuna deadpanned and stared at her dumbfounded.

Reborn smirked. "Brains will always outdo brawn."

"Exactly! I thought that I had given myself away when I told Alicia that the kids and I made cookies. I mean really! Who else would stir the batter and whatnot? But Alicia is gullible and has a hard time saying no to me, so it worked out!"

'_I get the feeling that Hailey-chan can be extremely manipulative sometimes_' Tsuna thought to himself.

There was a sudden explosion and everyone turned to see a cloud of pink smoke. 15 year old Lambo walked out of the cloud. "Yo, young Vongola," Lambo said with a short wave.

"Ah, adult Lambo. How are you?" Tsuna said politely.

Alison looked around. Hailey had disappeared. Alison stood on Tsuna's lap and peered over the counter to see Hailey crouching on her hands and knees. "Sissy," Hailey motioned with her hands to stop, but Alison didn't get the message and kept talking, "what are you doing?"

Hailey stood up slowly and laughed nervously. "Ah I dropped my ladle," she lied lamely.

Lambo gasped.

'_Shit_,' Hailey thought.

"Hailey-nee where have you and Risa-nee been?" Lambo ran forward and hugged Hailey, "Tsuna-nii and Hibari-san have been looking all over for you two! We all miss you very much and the other Dimenticato won't tell us if you're ok or not."

"Lambo, you're 10 years in the past remember? I'm afraid I wouldn't know." Hailey gently detached herself and sighed. "Honestly, what _are_ you wearing? You should try covering up more skin, ne?"

Lambo laughed. "Alicia whacked the back of my head when I first started wearing this. Lots of girls think it makes me look good."

Hailey handed him a lollipop and ruffled his hair. "Yeah, Alicia would be more violent to those sort of things, wouldn't she. Jeez you grew up fast. And you're taller now. Please tell me you aren't taller than me in the future."

"Last time I saw you, you complained about that too. Hailey-nee you're the smartest person I know, so maybe you can figure out where you went. When you two left you seemed really serious and anxious, almost like you were mad and afraid of something. You told I-pin and me that you had a very important client and that it would take you a few days. But then you never came back! It's been a month now."

"Lambo, even if I did figure it out I still wouldn't tell you. I'm sorry, but whatever I do in the future is my business. My sister and I do whatever we need to do."

Lambo sighed, disheartened. "I know."

This time it was Hailey's turn to sigh. She just couldn't bring herself to allow the older cow boy to stay upset. "I can tell you that we are still alive right now. Tell Tsuna and Hibari to stop looking for us. We'll probably reappear at a later time with important information for those two. Until then don't worry yourselves so much."

Lambo broke out into a smile and nodded. A pink cloud enveloped him and the younger and more annoying cow child returned. "Gyahahaha! The great Lambo-sama is back!" Hailey shooed Lambo out of the kitchen so that she could resume cooking once more.

"How would you know that you're alright in the future and that you'd bring back information soon?" Reborn inquired.

Tsuna glanced back and forth between the two. He could feel a slight amount of tension in the air.

Hailey shrugged. "Lambo gave up enough information for me to make an educated guess."

Reborn tugged at his fedora slightly. "There's a rumor that the people who are recruited into your family are selected based on if they have the ability to see into the future."

Hailey smirked. "That would be interesting, but I abhor the thought of knowing my own death. I suppose someone would start that rumor if they didn't believe how good our information network is though. But in the end, knowledge is the key to everything."

* * *

><p>Today Hailey and Alicia were wondering around. It was Hailey's first time going outside the apartment building since her last mission, so she was enjoying the fresh air and freedom. They happened to be passing by the school when they heard and explosion.<p>

"Do I even _want_ to know what's going over there?" Alicia asked herself out loud.

Hailey laughed. "I bet you 10,000 yen that they're doing that power up training. There's no school today after all."

"No way. I'm not losing any more money," Alicia protested and shoved her hands into her pockets.

"Well, I'm going to go check up on them. Why don't you locate Tsuna's mom and make sure she finds Gokudera later."

"Fine, fine. Just don't drag me into their stupid training thing." Alicia walked away with a wave behind her.

Hailey skipped over and saw Yamamoto, Gokudera, Tsuna, Kyoko, and Reborn on the baseball field. A whole in the batting cage told Hailey that Yamamoto had just thrown a micro hammer baseball, which explained the explosion earlier. Hailey walked up behind Tsuna and Kyoko and whistled.

"Hiiiiie!" Tsuna squealed.

Hailey ignored him and continued to examine the hole. "That looks like it could really hurt if you got hit with that thing. So I'm guessing you just had Yamamoto throw a micro hammer baseball huh?" Hailey asked turning to Reborn.

Reborn smirked. "That's right," he turned back to Yamamoto, "To use a weapon properly, one needs exceptional reflexes and the ability to follow moving objects with their eyes."

"Yeah," Yamamoto agreed, "they say a good batter can see any kind of ball standing still."

"You're a quick learner," Reborn commented.

"Che. You should just let Yamamoto throw some of the rocks lying around," Gokudera grumbled. Tsuna just continued to watch next to him, but Hailey could tell that Tsuna was thinking that Yamamoto didn't need a weapon to begin with.

Reborn whistled and the sound of a fast incoming object came into hearing. Realizing what that sound meant, Hailey quickly back-tracked away from Yamamoto.

There was a glint in the sky, causing Yamamoto to frown and dodged just in time to avoid a micro hammer baseball. The impact sent up a dust cloud that quickly dissipated and revealed a tank moving toward the group.

"E-eh! W-what is that?" Tsuna asked in shock.

"A pitching machine," Reborn said like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"That's definitely a tank!" Tsuna yelled at Reborn.

The tank stopped. The door on the top opened up and Dino came out. "It's been a while, Tsuna."

"Dino-san?" Tsuna asked incredulously.

"Thanks for coming," Reborn said.

"No problem," Dino said as he closed the hatch again.

Reborn looked up at Yamamoto. "You need to avoid the balls from this pitching machine."

Yamamoto turned back to the tank again. "Sounds like fun! I'm counting on you!" The tank charged forward and Yamamoto ran away from it, dodging several spiked mini baseballs with ease.

* * *

><p>One of the micro hammer baseballs was shot out of the field. At that time Alicia was taking her time walking down the street. She glanced up and saw Haru walking the opposite direction. Alicia <em>really<em> didn't feel like talking to Haru so she sped up a little. Suddenly the wall behind her was blown apart.

Alicia froze, and then started to turn very slowly. She stopped herself. '_No. NO! I am not going get drawn into that. Just ignore it. If I didn't see it, then it wasn't there. I'm going to pretend I _never_ heard that. Just keep walking Alicia, just _keep_ walking_.' Alicia kept her eyes looking straight ahead and refused to look at anything behind her till she was several blocks away.

* * *

><p>Hailey giggled as she watched her sister's quickly retreating figure. She could practically see Alicia's thought process streaming above her head.<p>

Yamamoto dodged a few more spiked baseballs and laughed. "It's just like playing war!"

"Yamamoto looks so happy," Tsuna said as he watched Yamamoto run and dodge in amazement.

"A man who can enjoy combat will become strong," Reborn remarked.

Gokudera clicked his tongue in annoyance.

Tsuna looked down at Reborn. "But what if on hits him?"

"Then that's it for him," Reborn said easily. Tsuna looked to shocked to even freak out.

"Gyahahaha! Lambo-san has appeared! I'm going to have fun too!" Lambo shouted. Yamamoto suddenly ran past and a spiked baseball blew up the ground right next to the cow child and sent him flipping away through the air.

"Watch out for stray shots," Reborn said without any remorse.

"Too late!" Tsuna exclaimed.

Hailey giggled and walked away. Everything was going the way she remembered it. She figured she didn't need to be there anymore. Besides, she still wasn't quite up to fighting and training yet. Instead she chose to wonder through the halls and track down Hibari.

It wasn't really all that difficult. There were really only two places Hibari would be if there were no students around to bite to death, and that was either the roof or the reception room. Hailey decided to try the reception room first, and wasn't unlucky.

"Hey there, Hibari-san!" Hailey said cheerily and walked in.

Hibari looked up from the couch with a look that said 'Again? Really?'

"I figured you've been doing a lot of work for the disciplinary committee so I brought you some green tea!" Hailey pulled a thermos out of her bag. She set id down on the table and turned to leave.

"Why do you bother?" It was soft, almost like he didn't quite want her to hear.

"Because Hibari works so hard, _someone_ other than his subordinates has to show that they appreciate him. And I know that other than the ones who work under you in the disciplinary committee, Tsuna, Yamamoto, Gokudera, Ryohei, Reborn and I-pin like Hibari."

"Are those herbivores really the only ones? Because I don't need such emotions from them."

"I suppose…" Hailey said without turning around and then left without another word.

Perhaps she was getting a little too close. It was going against her final mission. But she also wanted to help Hibari get used to the idea of working with Tsuna and the other guardians…

It was all just very confusing…

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Review! <strong>**Review! ****Review! ****Review! ****Review! ****Review! ****Review! ****Review! ****Review! ****Review! ****Review! ****

****PLEASE REVIEW!****

****Thanks for reading! See you at my next update! I should be getting to the first big battle soon. If you can also put in your opinion for a couple of things that would be great.****

****First) I'm leading Hailey towards Hibari and Tsuna (but I'm debating which one), but then who should Alicia possibly fall for or fall for her?****

****Second) The next parts before Fuuta arrives is the Vongola New Years battle thing, the zoo, snowball fight, death mountain, and then the hospital scene. Should I do a chapter with all of them, or a few of them (if so, which ones), or just get to the fight with the Kokuyo gang?****

****Please let me know!****


	9. Chapter IX

**Hiiii! Thanks for the comments. I guess I should let you guys know so you don't end up hating Hailey, well Hailey isn't perfect. You'll find out more when the Varia comes. Also I'm giving a lot of attention to Hailey right now because later she's not really going to be...present...(I'll let you guys ponder about that on your own! Can't give away too much can I? ;])**

**Oh and I'll apologize now. This chapter is going to be skipping around. I wanted to get in the side stories so that I could start the Kokuyo arc in chapter ten.**

**Anyways please enjoy chapter nine! And REVIEW! when you're done! Pretty please!**

* * *

><p>Chapter IX<p>

New Year's had finally come around. Hailey and Alicia set out because Reborn had come to personally invite them to Tsuna's New Year party. Hailey had to make sure that Reborn wasn't going to involve them before accepting and Alicia stated that she would not go without the promise of good and edible food. She especially emphasized the edible part. On the way to Tsuna's house they met up with Kyoko and Haru.

"Hailey-chan! Risa-chan!" Kyoko called out. The twins turned around to see the two girls walking up to them in their kimonos. Kyoko was wearing a read kimono with pink flowers and had a white flower in her hair, which was tied up. Haru had her hair in pig tails and wore a forest green kimono with yellow flowers.

"Hahi, aren't you two going to wear a kimono?" Haru asked as she scanned their choice of clothes.

Hailey laughed a little. "Sorry. We don't know how to wear one. We never had something like that from America." This was partially true. But Hailey was just too nice to say that they didn't want to wear one because it would restrict their stride. But sadly for the twins, that was a wrong choice of words.

Alicia felt a sense of dread when Haru's and Kyoko's eyes started sparkling and a look of glee at a possible challenge entered their expressions.

Alicia wondered if she should make a break for it.

But it was too late.

Kyoko linked arms with Hailey and Haru grabbed Alicia's arm. The two girls proceeded to pull the twins away and prepared them to meet Tsuna and co.

* * *

><p>Tsuna was busy trying to shut the greedy Lambo up. Lambo was shouting at people passing by Tsuna's house heading to the shrine for New Year's money. The cow child was about to succeed when Tsuna pulled him down and covered his mouth while apologizing the people on the street.<p>

Tsuna was busy with Lambo, he didn't notice Kyoko walk up to him. "Tsuna-kun, Lambo-kun."

"Ky-Kyoko-chan!" Tsuna said in surprise. Kyoko bowed a little bit and wished him a happy new year, which Tsuna stuttered back. He wondered what Kyoko was doing there, and started to fantasize that Kyoko was there to see him.

"Brother said this would be the first time he's come over to your house," Kyoko said happily.

"Oh, I see," Tsuna said absentmindedly. "Eh! Big brother!"

Ryohei appeared in front of Kyoko and yelled a happy new year. "My ambition for this year is: EXTREME!"

"Don't you mean this year as well," Tsuna sweat dropped and said while watching him with incredulousness of Ryohei's behavior.

"He says the same thing every year," Kyoko informed Tsuna.

"More importantly Sawada! Thanks for inviting me over for New Year's!" Ryohei exclaimed.

"Inviting?" Tsuna said confused. He turned as more people called out his name and saw Haru, Gokudera, and Yamamoto walking toward them. They all wished Tsuna a happy new year.

"Haru-chan where are Risa-chan and Hailey-chan?" Kyoko asked.

Haru smiled. "They said they would catch up because Risa-chan was having a hard time walking."

The sound of an engine made them turn around. Tsuna shouted in shock as he saw a mechanically driven cart heading for them with the twins sitting on it. It skidded to a stop in front of them. Alicia and Hailey slid off and after punching in a few buttons the cart turned around and went back the way it came.

"God, what a pain!" Alicia grumbled.

Hailey ignored her sister. "Happy New Year Tsuna-kun!" she sang.

Tsuna looked at the two. Hailey had her hair in high pig tails streaming down and tied up with dark blue ribbons with small silver bells on the end. Her kimono was dark blue with white cherry blossoms. Alicia had her hair tied in a messy, but stylish bunch, and had. She wore a white kimono with pink cherry blossoms.

Alicia caught him looking at her. "If you say _anything_, I swear you won't live to see the next year."

"Alicia don't be grumpy!" Hailey scolded, "You look really pretty! Right Tsuna?"

"Ah- a- u-um yeah!" Tsuna stuttered and looked away.

A hole opened up and Reborn suddenly came out the ground. "Thank you for coming."

"Yet another unreasonable appearance," Tsuna said wearily.

"I see your all assembled," Reborn said, ignoring Tsuna. "We're about to begin the official Vongola Ceremonial Family New Year's Battle."

"What is that?" Tsuna demanded.

Reborn ignored him once again. "Hey, you opponents are here."

The group turned to see Dino driving up in a truck. "Sorry to keep you waiting. Everyone, hop on!"

The group was driven over to the river for the Vongola New Year's Battle. Hailey and Alicia excused themselves from the event and chose to sit somewhere behind Reborn so that they could observe while eating the Osechi that Reborn gave them in exchange for coming.

As the battle proceeded they could see Tsuna becoming more and more high-strung. Only Tsuna, Gokudera, the twins, Dino, and Dino's subordinates knew that Reborn would seriously make them pay the winning team 100 million yen. But it all ended with Dino and Tsuna running away so that they wouldn't be forced to eat Bianchi's New Year's mochi.

* * *

><p>A few days later it finally snowed. Since Hailey and Alicia skipped out on the zoo fiasco they felt that one of them should go check up on Tsuna and the gang. However, Alicia is <em>not<em> a snow person. She is vehemently a summer and fall person. Hailey on the other hand _loved_ the winter and spring. Snow and ice was Hailey's favorite, so she had to go alone to see how their charges were doing.

She walked up to the school and spotted Reborn immediately. He was wearing a caveman outfit and watching as everyone ran around and dodging Bianchi's team's poisonous snowballs, while throwing their own normal ones.

"Hi Reborn!" Hailey called as she walked up. She stood beside him and watched for a while.

"Where's Alicia?"

Hailey smiled. "Alicia doesn't like the cold. She prefers it to be rather hot, being a summer person and all."

"I suppose you're the exact opposite." It wasn't a question.

Hailey just laughed.

"For twins, your strength doesn't seem very equal. From what I've seen, you are much stronger."

Hailey shook her head. "On terms of physical strength Alicia and I are even. I just choose to think with my head more."

"That's what I mean by stronger."

"Well I have my fair share of weaknesses in exchange for my strength."

"And what would those be?"

Hailey laughed again. "Now come on Reborn. You can't expect me to willingly give away any of my weaknesses to a hitman!"

Reborn smirked. "I suppose not."

When Enzo appeared Hailey decided to take her leave. Everyone was so focused on their snowball fight that they hadn't noticed her at all. On the way out she passed by Hibari and waved before turning towards home.

* * *

><p>"Alicia it's your turn to go check up on them since I went yesterday."<p>

"No way!" Alicia yelled from underneath her blankets.

"I went to the snowball fight!" Hailey argued as she banged on Alicia's locked door.

"There's no way hell that I'm willingly going to go up Reborn's death mountain!"

"It's not like you'll actually die."

"No way!"

Hailey sighed. "Well someone needs to lead them down."

"Then you do it! Besides it's even colder up the mountain!"

"Well then how about we don't go up the mountain till we absolutely have to and when we do we'll ride up and then lead everyone back down"

"….Deal."

* * *

><p>On one of the mountains near Namimori, the citizens could hear a scream going off every other minute.<p>

Meanwhile Tsuna was facing Reborn's trial on the replica of the Vongola's Death Mountain in Italy. Yamamoto, who still thought this was all a game, and Gokudera were doing their best to assist Tsuna. Dino was watching over as an official with Reborn.

Tsuna evaded falling bears, attacking chestnuts; lived through sitting under a waterfall and a giant rubber duck falling on him; and only got half eaten by man eating plants, giant snakes, or enormous spiders. Nearing the end of the day the boys met up with Bianchi, Lambo, I-pin, Kyoko, and Haru. They decided to light a fire in order to ward off animals and send an SOS. But when Gokudera tried to light the fire with his dynamite Bianchi made him look at her, which made him faint and drop his dynamite. The dynamite went everywhere and caused a forest fire, which Tsuna had to put out with his dying will. But the water made Enzo grow and when Enzo tripped, he broke Tsuna's leg. Now it was night and they were still stuck on the mountain.

"How are we going to get down!" Tsuna yelled, "Reborn! Where are you?" Suddenly he was kicked from behind.

Reborn propelled himself off of Tsuna and landed on a nearby boulder. "Don't worry. Help is on the way."

Just then the sounds of engines ripped through the air and two dirt bikes jumped out onto the pathway. The two bikes turned and skidded to a stop right in front of everyone. One of the two people took off their helmet to reveal Hailey.

"Yo! Thought you might need a hand!" Hailey said cheerfully.

"Hailey-chan! Risa-chan!" Tsuna exclaimed happily. '_Thank god, we're save!_' He thought to himself.

Hailey smiled and gave everyone the thumbs up. "Alicia will take you down first Tsuna, since your leg is broken. That way you can get to the hospital. I'll lead everyone else back, okay?"

Gokudera and Yamamoto helped Tsuna onto the bike behind Alicia. She took off quickly with Tsuna screaming for her to slow down. Hailey lead everyone else down a safe back road that Reborn had failed to mention when Tsuna was around.

* * *

><p>They didn't want to get caught up in all the ruckus that would ensue later so Hailey and Alicia went to visit Tsuna as soon as visiting hours opened.<p>

"Hey Tsuna! How you feelin'?" Hailey asked cheerfully as she walked in.

Alicia smiled and ruffled his hair. "You did well to survive Reborn's death mountain."

Tsuna laughed.

"Here!" Hailey handed over some sweets, "Alicia and I wanted to bring you this and hope you get well soon!"

Tsuna smiled appreciatively. "Thanks!"

Hailey eyed the other three boys in the room. She knew that they were going to pick on Tsuna the moment they left. She turned towards them and smiled. "Please take care of Tsuna. I'm sure that all of his friends will appreciate it as well." The boys blushed a little. They probably couldn't believe that the wimpy guy that was moved into their room could have a couple of cute girls visiting.

"We have to go now. We're sorry we can't stay longer," Alicia said kindly.

"No, no! That's okay! Thank you for visiting!" Tsuna said quickly.

The twins smiled and left. It was just in time because moments later Dino started walking towards his room.

* * *

><p>Tsuna, Yamamoto, and Gokudera met up like they usually did and talked about this and that. However they were greeted by a <em>not<em> so usual sight when they reached the front gate to school.

Hailey was latched onto the wall and Alicia was pulling Hailey by the waist with all her might. They noticed that Alicia was carrying two school bags and Hailey's uniform was rumpled and looked extremely messy compared to her usual pristine attire.

"Hailey you can't skip school for such a stupid reason!" Alicia yelled as she tried to pull harder.

"I hate Valentine's Day! I hate it! I hate it! I hate it!" Hailey retorted with her eyes squeezed shut.

"Suck it up! We have to get to class!" Alicia pulled even harder causing Hailey's fingers to slip and the two girls tumbled backwards.

Hailey jumped up and tried to use this opportunity to escape. But before she could get far her arms were grabbed by Yamamoto and Gokudera.

"What do you think you're doing whitey? Causing so much trouble for tenth in the morning," Gokudera grumbled. He handed the arm he was holding off to Alicia.

"What's wrong Hailey?" Yamamoto asked.

"Today's Valentine's Day, that's what's wrong!" Hailey spat.

Tsuna sweat dropped a little. "Today's not that bad."

"This is the one day a year that Hailey becomes an irritable and hostile person," Alicia informed them as Yamamoto and she dragged Hailey. "Mom and dad usually just let her stay home, but I don't think that's a good enough reason to skip."

"What's so bad about Valentine's Day? All the girls here are really nice and give me lots of candy," Yamamoto said cheerfully.

Gokudera clicked his tongue impatiently. "I'm not for this holiday either, but I can't see why someone could be this against it."

"Before we came here, Hailey would be mobbed with guys every year. In America it's not just the girls who gave candies. All the guys would also stalk her all day. As we got older the guys became more perverted. Since there were always so many surrounding her some of the guys would touch her butt or chest. One year she finally snapped and beat the crap out of all the guys surrounding her and developed this other personality." Alicia sighed at the memory.

When Alicia and Yamamoto had forced Hailey into her seat she was instantly surrounded by admirers.

"Hailey-chan!"

"Hailey-sama! Good morning!"

"Hailey-chan are you giving out chocolates?"

Hailey growled and glared at the group. Her admirers all faltered and scrambled back.

Alicia snickered. "I wouldn't get to close if I were you. This is the one day Hailey ain't gonna be sweet."

* * *

><p>Although Hailey's admirers didn't crowd around Hailey, they still followed her around all day. Hailey finally managed to give them the slip at lunch time by hiding on the roof. She leaned against the wall and slid down, sighing in relief.<p>

"Tch. Man, they're so irritating! It gives me a damn headache," Hailey muttered.

"Hn. So the rumor that the snow princess became the ice queen today was true."

Hailey whipped her head up to see Hibari propped up against the water tower and smirking.

"Hi Hibari," Hailey sighed forlornly. "What's up with the stupid nicknames?"

Hibari smirk grew. "A pet name given by the weaker set of herbivores."

Hailey's frown increased. She shut her eyes in irritation and tried to forget everything. She heard Hibari smirk again as he stretch out to take a nap.

But lunch break doesn't last forever and soon the bell was ringing. Hailey could swear that it was taunting her. She sighed and stood up.

"Hey Hibari!" Hailey tossed up a small box. Hibari caught it without opening his eyes. Hailey smirked. It was just like Hibari to do something cool like that. She left the roof without another word.

* * *

><p>Alicia yawned her way through classes. It was so boring, but she had to stay awake in case Hailey made another escape attempt. After all she had already tried seven times before lunch break. Alicia wasn't worried through lunch though because she had seen Hailey sneak onto the roof, and Alicia had staked out the place till Hailey had come down. But the whole escapade had made Alicia tired. She was very thankful when the bell rang, signaling the end of the day.<p>

As she headed to the door she paused. She reached into her bag and took out a small box of chocolates with a note attached. She should just give them to him now, before Hailey got mad at her for not delivering it. The twins and the children had made the chocolates together and decided to give some of them to others.

Alicia had already tossed Yamamoto's and Gokudera's chocolates into their bags. Alicia had also given Ryohei a box when she bumped into him in the hallway during one break. Hailey was given a box to give to Hibari since she was the only one who got along with him.

Alicia had refused point blank. She would rather stick her head into a dumpster than give tonfa boy a box of chocolates.

Hailey also had a box to give to Reborn, but she was able to give it to him during break as well. She just had to knock on the fire hydrant box, where Reborn was often found.

Tsuna suddenly went into dying will mode and ran out of the classroom. Yamamoto and Gokudera soon followed. Alicia saw Reborn standing on the desk behind Tsuna's. Reborn looked at her then hopped off the desk and headed out.

Alicia decided she would ask Tsuna's mom to give it to him. It would be troublesome to chase after him now. Alicia went to town to pick up a few groceries that they needed before heading toward Tsuna's house. She was too lazy to help Tsuna with his poison chocolate problem, and she didn't feel like getting dragged in by Kyoko and Haru to make more chocolates either.

Alicia rang the doorbell and waited. Just as she had hoped, Nana Sawada came out. Alicia smiled and bowed politely.

"Good afternoon Sawada-san. I'm a classmate of Tsuna. If you could, can you deliver this too him?" She held out a box of chocolates, "He dropped it in class and I thought I should make sure it returned to him."

"Ara! Tsuna has so many cute friends. Why don't you come in? You can deliver the box in person then!" Nana said cheerfully.

"I apologize, but I really must get going. My sister will start to worry if I don't come home soon." Alicia bowed again.

Nana looked a little disappointed. "Ok, please come back and visit any time! You can bring your sister with you, I'm sure it would make Tsu-kun very happy!" Nana smiled. She waved as Alicia walked away. As Alicia neared the corner an old lady came around. Alicia bowed politely and kept walking.

* * *

><p>"Tsu-kun! Some chocolates came for you!" Nana said gleefully. "Here you go."<p>

Tsuna reached up and took the boxes in a bit of shock, then realized something and turned toward Kyoko. '_Oh no! Getting chocolate like this, in front of Kyoko-chan…_' Kyoko continued to smile obliviously. "From who?" Tsuna demanded, turning back to his mother.

"I met an old lady outside. She said 'Thank you for this morning.'"

"Oh, that lady!"

Yamamoto, Kyoko, and Haru complimented Tsuna, who just laughed bashfully.

"Oh! But what about this one?" Tsuna held up a slightly smaller box.

Nana smiled. "A pretty classmate said you dropped it at school and she was returning it to you. Ah, but she didn't tell me her name."

Tsuna frowned a little. He hadn't received any chocolates from anyone in school today. Tsuna opened the not that was attached.

_Happy Valentine's Day Tsuna-ni! _

_From: Alison, Hailey, and Alicia!_

Tsuna smiled. He figured it was probably Risa who gave the chocolates to his mother. Hailey probably would have come in and shoved it into his face.

* * *

><p>Hailey was waiting outside their room for Alicia. The moment the elevator door opened to reveal her twin, Hailey called out to her.<p>

"Alicia, we have a problem."

Alicia looked up, immediately becoming more serious. "What's wrong? Did something happen or is it a job?"

"After Valentine's Day, ranking Fuuta comes."

Alicia dropped her serious attitude. "Yeah, so?"

"Fuuta is going to make a ranking for Nami middle's strongest students."

"And?"

"Where do you thing we are going to be ranked exactly?" Hailey asked impatiently.

"I dunno…maybe first?"

"Do you see the problem with that?"

Alicia sighed. "Just come out with it!"

"If we're ranked first, then we'll be throwing off the story!"

"…Oh…"

"There's a good chance of us getting targeted to."

Alicia frowned. "That would be troublesome and irritating."

"We need to transfer schools, like _now_!"

"Hold on. The farther away from Tsuna we are, the more difficult it'll be to protect him. Beside, we don't know if we'll be ranked number one."

"We can't take any of the other spots either!" Hailey yelled exasperated.

"We should test this out."

Hailey raised an eyebrow skeptically. "And how do you suggest we do that?"

"One of us should fight Hibari."

Hailey rolled her eyes. "You've been itching to fight him since before we came to this world."

Alicia shook her head. "That's not it-well that's part of it- but what I'm getting at is you shouldn't count Hibari out just yet. I think we could be a tie for that rank."

Hailey stared at her sister critically. If they tied Hibari for number one, then technically they wouldn't be screwing with the other spots and thus screw the story line… "Fine. You can be the one to fight him. We'll go right now. It'll be better this way since no students are around."

Alicia grinned like the Cheshire cat. This was going to be fun.

* * *

><p>A paper airplane flew into the reception office and landed on the coffee table in front of Hibari. The prefect unfolded the plane and read:<p>

_Yo Tonfa Boy,_

_It's time we had a match and this time you won't be getting off easy because Hailey's finally allowing it. I'm waiting on the roof. Let's see if you are capable to 'bite me to death' as you put it._

_Kiyomizu Alicia (smiley with tongue sticking out xp)_

Hibari smirked. So the white herbivore wasn't going to interfere like she usually does. He would relish finally getting to fight one of the twins and bite them to death. He walked out of the reception office toward the roof.

Sure enough Alicia was standing in the middle of the roof waiting for Hibari. Hailey was sitting on top of the opposite entrance so that she could watch.

Alicia smirked when she saw Hibari. She wasted no time. She charged toward Hibari.

* * *

><p>Alicia and Hibari stood a short distance apart panting.<p>

The two had been fighting for over five hours straight. Neither one was willing to admit defeat. And it would have been just as big of a dent in their ego to admit that they were an even match.

Hailey sighed. She felt that Alicia's point had been proven four hours ago. But the two were so blood thirsty that Hailey wasn't able to make them stop, so she had opted out for watching them on the sidelines. However, she was now nearing the end of her patience. Hailey hopped down and pinned her sister to the ground.

"Times up! That's it for your fight. We're going home now since we still have to make dinner."

Hibari smirked. "You're not going anywhere herbivore. I'll bite you to death next."

"No can do! I'll fight you another time. But for now the two of us need to take our leave." Hailey dragged her sister up and towards the door.

The prefect grunted and hid his tonfas once again. He turned and walked out of the opposite entrance. Since Hailey had promised to fight him at some point, Hibari would let her go this time.

"Happy now?" Hailey asked irritated. She released her sister now that there was no threat of Alicia and Hibari trying to fight each other again.

"Very!" Alicia brushed herself off a little. "And I think I proved my point."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay, I got it. Now let's go home. We still have stuff to do and I'm pretty sure the kids are worried."

"Hmph. Tomorrows their first day at a public school right?"

"Yeah. They were pretty excited when I told them." Hailey smiled softly. "I've got all the paperwork done and I hacked the schools system to make sure that Alison and Michael were together and the other four boys had the same classes together as well."

"Good thing you're doing this, cause things are gonna start heating up pretty soon," Alicia looked up at the sky. Part of her was wishing for endless peace just like the sky above her.

* * *

><p>"Waaaaaaahhh! They grew up too faaaaaaaaast!" Hailey wailed. She had Alison and Michael trapped in one arm each and refusing to stop hugging them.<p>

Zach, Alex, Angelo, and Luca had already escaped Hailey's grasp and were standing a short distance away.

"Hailey-nee we have to go to class," Zach said, slightly irritated. Out of all of the boys, Zach had the shortest temper.

"But I don't want you to grow up just yet!" Hailey cried.

"Then why sign us up?" Zach countered.

"Alicia bullied me!"

Alicia rolled her eyes. "You agreed that they would have to get proper education soon. And they won't be kids forever."

"But I don't want them to go yet!"

"Sissy it's ok," Alison said soothingly.

"Yeah nee-chan, we'll make lots of friends and make you proud," Michael agreed.

Hailey's eyes went all big and sparkly, which brought back the waterworks. "I'm already proud of you! Don't gooooooooo! You're my little ones!"

Alicia slapped the back of Hailey's head, causing her to let go of the two youngest ones. Alicia then proceeded to drag Hailey away by her collar. "God! You're acting like you'll never see them again! We'll be picking them up after school, so cool it already!"

"Bye! I'll be back after school! Look after each other! Take care! See you later!" Hailey called after them while waving and crying till they were out of sight. Hailey picked herself off and walked on Alicia's right side. She wiped her eyes of the remaining tears.

"Che. You refuse to get close to Tsuna and his guardians because of the second mission, but you went and got all attached to those kids. You're such a hypocrite."

"I can't help it. I've always been a sucker for kids."

The two walked towards Namimori jr high at a leisurely pace, talking every so often but mostly enjoying the silence. That is till they say a big man grabbing the arm of a little boy who was yelling at the big man to let go. The twins looked at each other and nodded.

They walked up to the man unnoticed. At the same time they stopped and Hailey with her right leg and Alicia with her left leg kicked the man in the chest, sending him flying backwards. The twins high fived each other.

The big man stood up. "Why you?" He growled. Alicia ran forward and punched the guy in the face. And when the guy stood up again, Alicia chopped him on the back of the neck and succeeded in knocking him unconscious for sure.

"Hailey-nee! Alicia-nee! Thank you very much!" The little boy exclaimed.

Hailey and Alicia looked down, surprised that the boy knew their name. They froze. It was Fuuta who was looking up at them thankfully.

Uh oh…Were they supposed to do that…

* * *

><p><strong>Thanks for reading! Please review! Reviews are what inspire me to type out the stuff in my journal.<strong>

**All the main battles are already written out actually. I already wrote a few of the side stories that I felt were the most amusing, but the rest I had to write from scratch. When the main battles roll around the balance between Hailey and Alicia will even out!**

**Sorry for typos! ****Till next time!**


	10. Chapter X

**Hi everyone! Here's another chapter! I'm really happy that I have so many hits and all, but i would really love to read more reviews! Hint, hint!**

**Thanks to those who did review! It made me very happy!**

**Anyways, I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

><p>Chapter X<p>

"Hailey-nee," Fuuta turned toward Hailey specifically, "Please! Can you and Alicia-nee protect me?" Fuuta gave her his puppy eyes. Alicia could practically see the colorful sparkles twinkling around him and an angelic glow caressing his face.

Alicia recognized a critical hit in Hailey's small ability to say no to kids. "Why us Fuuta?" She asked since Hailey was frozen, and probably in a heated battle with herself.

"Because Hailey-nee and Alicia-nee is ranked 2 out of 872 in the 'overall strength and intelligence'! And even though Hailey-nee and Alicia-nee is ranked tenth from last in the 'cannot refuse when asked'. Hailey-nee is ranked 1 in the 'cannot say no to kids'. Hailey-nee and Alicia-nee are also ranked as number 3 for 'no ambition in the mafia'. So I can trust you two. Hailey-nee please help me!" Fuuta jumped up and hugged Hailey.

Whatever was left of Hailey's ability to say no after the puppy eyes was shattered by now.

"Alicia…" Hailey said slowly.

"No!" Alicia said firmly.

"Just for a few days."

"No!"

"We could still find a way."

"No!"

"But he asked us first."

"No!"

"But-"

"No means no dammit!" Alicia glanced down at Fuuta who was still hugging Hailey. "I'm sorry Fuuta, but we can't be the ones to protect you. Who's second on your list to ask for protection."

"Hailey-nee."

"Third?"

"Hailey-nee."

"Forth?"

"Hailey-nee."

"_Fifth_?"

"Hailey-nee."

"_Sixth_?"

"Tsuna-ni."

"Wow Hailey. Did you hear that? You're so pathetic you take up the first five slots all on your own," Alicia said sarcastically.

Hailey sighed. "I know, I know! It's just when they're cute, I just feel so _bad_!" Hailey turned her attention back to Fuuta, "How about we protect you until we reach Tsuna's house ok?"

"Alright Hailey-nee," Fuuta said slightly rejected.

"Don't worry squirt, Tsuna will be a lot more fun and interesting than the two of us." Alicia winked.

Hailey held Fuuta's hand and conversed with him all the way to Tsuna's house. Alicia, on the other hand, was more alert of their surroundings and watched for any suspicious mafia members.

"Good morning Sawada-san!" Hailey called cheerfully when Nana opened the door. "We're classmates of Tsuna-kun! Actually we're escorting this boy who was looking for Tsuna-kun and since he's in school right now we decided that it was best to bring him here!"

"Ara? Thank you very much! I'm so glad Tsuna has so many good friends. Please come in! You can all wait for Tsuna up in his room!" Nana said happily.

'_You're kidding me! Isn't she concerned at all that we're not in school right now as well?_' Alicia thought in bewilderment, completely mystified by Tsuna's mother's naivety.

The three kids took their shoes off at the front all and were greeted by Reborn.

"Ciaossu."

Alicia raised a hand in a motionless wave. "Yo."

"Good morning Reborn!" Hailey greeted with a smile. She bowed to Nana. "My name is Kiyomizu Hailey. This is my sister Alicia and this young boy is Fuuta. Thank you for having us Sawada-san!"

Fuuta bowed politely. "It's nice to meet you Sawada-san and Reborn-san."

Nana smiled and waved her hand up in down in embarrassment. "Such polite friends! You can call me Nana! Or mother or mama!"

Hailey just giggled.

"Well why don't all of you wait upstairs and I can bring up tea and snacks!" Nana rushed off to her kitchen before they could reply.

Reborn hitched a ride up in Hailey's shoulder as the headed up to Tsuna's room. "So ranking Fuuta is going to be staying here now."

"Yup!" Hailey said cheerfully.

"Hey he hasn't even asked Tsuna yet," Alicia said exasperated.

"There's no way he's going to be able to say no to this face," Hailey said as she knelt down to Fuuta's height and gazed up at Alicia with him.

Alicia sweat dropped. Poor Tsuna…

* * *

><p>The four of them talked about Fuuta's situation and the possible events to come while they waited for Tsuna. Just as Nana promised they were provided with tea and snacks, which they happily munched on. After a while Alicia got tired of waiting and hopped onto Tsuna's bed to take a nap while they waited. When they heard the door open Fuuta got tense.<p>

"What's wrong Fuuta-kun?" Hailey asked.

"I'm a little nervous," the little boy admitted, suddenly finding his knees very interesting.

"It's okay! Just work that cuteness you have and there's no way Tsuna can say no!" Hailey winked and gave a thumb up.

"Hey," Alicia warned and opened one eye, "Don't tell him that! He'll turn into a manipulative freak like you."

Hailey giggled and smiled brightly at her sister. "Whatever do you mean my dear precious sister?"

Alicia sweat dropped again.

Tsuna's bedroom door was swung open. Tsuna sighed. "I'm so tired. Huh?" He had finally noticed the others occupying his room.

Fuuta stood up and shook both of Tsuna's hands. "I finally get to meet you! Nice to meet you, Tsuna-ni!"

"Eh. Tsuna-ni? Who are you?"

Reborn suddenly appeared, kneeling, on Tsuna's head. "He seemed like he had a favor to ask you."

"A favor?" Tsuna asked as Reborn jumped off.

Fuuta looked up at Tsuna with a sad face and his hands together as if in prayer. "My name is Fuuta. The mafia is after me."

"Haah? Hey, Reborn!" Tsuna asked in disbelief. But when Reborn didn't answer Tsuna jumped a little in shock. "O-oi! Wha- Ii- He's serious?"

"Just sit down and listen already," Alicia commanded from the bed.

"Eh! Risa-san! Hailey-chan! What are you doing here?"

"We're the ones who brought Fuuta over of course!" Hailey said joyously. "We promised to protect him till you got here!"

"Haah?"

Hailey closed her eyes in a brighter smile. "Just sit down and Fuuta will explain!"

Tsuna joined Hailey and Fuuta at his table.

"Vongola the tenth, Tsuna-ni, please take me in!" Fuuta said desperately.

"W-What are you saying?" Tsuna said roughly. "I can't take on the mafia!"

"I know that," Fuuta said without missing a beat.

"Eh?" Tsuna was taken aback by that remark.

"Because Tsuna-ni's…" Fuuta pulled out his enormous ranking book.

"Huh? What is that?" Tsuna muttered with a tired expression.

"His combined combat prowess and intelligence are both ranked 872 out of 872, the lowest!" Tsuna opened his mouth in shock. "But your 'cannot refuse when asked' rank is number one, versus Hailey-nee and Alicia-nee who ranked tenth from last!"

"What was that?" Tsuna yelled.

"He's also known as 'Ranking Fuuta'," Reborn informed Tsuna, "He's an information specialist who has no equal when creating a ranking."

"Another weird one has come to me," Tsuna muttered to himself.

"Fuuta's ranking accuracy is 100%," Reborn continued. "Meaning, if one was to use this ranking book to create a strategy, he could win any battle, and it would be easy to take over the world."

"That's just scary," Tsuna muttered to himself again.

Fuuta clapped his hands together pleadingly. "Tsuna-ni, help me!"

"Eh," Tsuna turned his attention back to Fuuta. "It's wrong to come to me just because you know I can't refuse."

Fuuta and Reborn looked at each other. "It's not only that," Fuuta said as he and Reborn shook their heads. They held up a one finger at the same time. "Tsuna-ni's also number one when it comes to 'bosses with no ambition'. You wouldn't take my ranking book, so I can trust you!"

"That's somehow not very cool," Tsuna sobbed.

"Would you throw a small, pitiful animal," Reborn held up a picture of him in a squirrel costume, and then flipped it to a picture of him in a lion costume, "into a field with fearsome carnivores?"

"Small animal?" Tsuna asked. He turned to Fuuta who was looking at him with big puppy eyes surrounded by sparkles and bathed in an angelic light. "I-I can see him as one now."

"Tsuna-ni," Fuuta said pleadingly.

Tsuna sighed.

"So, it's decided," Reborn said with his arms crossed.

Tsuna caved. "All right."

Fuuta threw his hands up into the air joyfully. "Yay! Thank you Tsuna-ni!"

Hailey hugged Fuuta. "Isn't this great?"

Tsuna looked at Hailey with deadpan eyes.

"Don't worry Tsuna," Alicia said yawning and sitting up, "Hailey was way worse. She was ranked number one for the inability to say no to kids. It was so bad that she alone took up the first five slots in Fuuta's people to go to for help. That and both of us were ranked number three for no ambitions in the mafia. And I'm positive that if I wasn't there Hailey would have given in to Fuuta. Heck, she caved with just a puppy eyes and a hug."

"But he's just too _cute_!" Hailey squealed and nuzzled her cheek against Fuuta's. Fuuta didn't seemed bothered by it though, actually he seemed pretty happy that Hailey liked him so much.

Alicia sighed. "Well we need to go now. See ya."

"Bye Tsuna-kun, Reborn, Fuuta-kun! See you later!" Hailey gave Fuuta one last hug and waved to Reborn and Tsuna.

Tsuna waved back unenthusiastically.

* * *

><p>"Alicia, wait," Hailey called after her sister.<p>

Alicia turned back to face Hailey. Her sister sounded pretty serious. Hailey handed something to her.

"When Tsuna and his family save Fuuta, you and I will step in to dispose of the Todd Family."

Alicia smirked. "Okay, let's go."

The two girls disappeared.

* * *

><p>A large group of guys in grey suits were gathered outside the Sawada residence.<p>

Yamamoto and Gokudera stepped out the front door. Yamamoto was carrying what looked like a lime green pillow with a stripped scarf hanging out of it.

"Let's start this off lightly," Gokudera said as he took out a handful of dynamite.

"Yeah," Yamamoto agreed, "The signal to start the sports festival."

"Take that!" Gokudera yelled and threw the lit dynamite.

"Now," Yamamoto yelled and the two boys used the smoke as cover and escaped the men.

"I can't see anything!"

"Ah! Boss!"

"They're running. After him!"

All but three of the large group ran after Yamamoto and Gokudera, who were really holding Haru.

Meanwhile Tsuna and Fuuta slipped out back.

* * *

><p>Two figures stood on top of the roof of the Sawada's house. Both had black hair tied up and wore skin tight black clothing. The two looked exactly the same except for their masks. One was a black cat mask and the other a white cat mask. The eye holes were just horizontal slits.<p>

The two watched as the a large portion of the men gathered in front of the house ran after two boys in a yellow school uniform. The boy with black hair was carrying a green tube.

"I suppose you want to take the larger crowd?" The figure in the white mask asked and giggled.

The one wearing the black cat mask nodded. "I'll leave the small fry to you."

"The Todd Famiglia boss would be offended if he heard you," The one with white cat mask sang.

"You should take this more seriously. When the mask comes on, we become hitmen. Not who we usually are."

"Fine, fine." The figure with the white mask waved the other away. "Happy hunting."

The figures jumped in opposite directions and out of sight.

* * *

><p>Fuuta used his ranking abilities to try to turn the three Todd family members against each other, but it didn't last very long. One of the three grabbed Fuuta as the other two prepared to beat up Tsuna, but suddenly the boy fell back.<p>

"Did you do that?" The boss yelled, perplexed. But his two subordinates shook their heads, also confused.

"Reborn!" Tsuna jumped up in dying will mode. "I will protect Fuuta with my dying will!"

"Tsuna-ni! no! You have the lowest ranking! You can't beat them!" Fuuta yelled. But to his surprise, Tsuna took down the two subordinates.

"Why you!" The boss yelled and tried to punch the boy in his underwear. But with a backflip kick, Tsuna took the boss out as well.

"It's like a dream," Fuuta said softly, "This is the first time my rankings have been wrong."

Tsuna stood up straight and back to normal. He sighed. "W-we didn't die."

"That's amazing!" Fuuta said, walking up to Tsuna. "I'm so happy that you made my rankings wrong!" Fuuta jumped up and hugged Tsuna around his neck.

"You're happy to be wrong?"

"I want to stick with you and become even more happy! Can I stay here?"

"Eh!" Tsuna pulled Fuuta off of him.

Fuuta pulled his hands together in front of him again and looked up at Tsuna with cute and watery puppy eyes. "Tsuna-ni," he said pleadingly.

Tsuna knew he couldn't refuse this kid.

One of the mafia guys started to stir. Tsuna freaked out and pushed Fuuta and himself back a distance. Fuuta hid behind Tsuna again. But just as the guy started to push himself off the ground a figure came out of nowhere and stepped on his head. Tsuna could see that they were wearing a white cat mask.

"You're not going anywhere Rossie," the figure said. "Enzo, Paulo, and yourself will be coming with me."

"The-the white panther!" Rossie yelled, completely terrified.

'_White panther?_' Tsuna thought. The figure looked up at him and Tsuna went stiff with fear.

"Ciao!" There was a sudden burst of smoke and the figure along with the three men disappeared.

Tsuna coughed and looked around. In the place of the three men was a neatly folded school uniform.

* * *

><p>Yamamoto and Gokudera were running by the river, still leading the large pack of men.<p>

"Is this good enough?" Yamamoto asked.

"Yeah!" Gokudera said, then took out a bunch of dynamite and threw into the crowd of men. "Explode!"

There was a loud explosion and a bunch of smoke. Yamamoto and Gokudera waited for the smoke to clear so that they could check their handy work. Gokudera took out a few more sticks of dynamite when he saw a couple of the men had survived the blast, but froze when roped appeared out of nowhere and wound around every single member of the enemy family.

"What the-" Gokudera shouted.

A figure with a black cat mask jumped in front to the boys and pulled on the rope.

"The black panther!" One of the still conscious men yelled in fright.

"The Todd family is no longer any of your concern," the person said coldly, turning to Yamamoto and Gokudera. With another burst of smoke the person and mafia members disappeared.

* * *

><p>-A few days later-<p>

Hailey had just dropped the kids off at their school and was now walking to school alone. Alicia had been roped into meeting Kyoko and Hana early this morning and Hailey had wanted to make sure the kids had gotten to school safely so the two split up.

"Namimori Middle School Class 1-A, seat number 32: Kiyomizu Hailey," an emotionless voice said from behind.

Hailey sighed. She was afraid of this. "Kakimoto Chikusa, aren't you supposed to be targeting number three right now?" Hailey turned slowly to see a pale skin boy wearing a beanie and glasses, and with a barcode on his cheek, standing with a slight slouch and his hands in his pockets looking at her.

"Byon, let's get this over with Kakipii!" A boy with wild blond hair and a large scar going across his face walked over. They were wearing the same green school uniform.

"Ah, and I see you brought Joushima Ken with you too. And I was sure he was going after number four," Hailey said calmly. "The fact that you're here and facing me right now tells me that you already most likely know who I am. If that's the case, then you should also know that you two aren't a match for me. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm really not in the mood to fight." Hailey made a run for it.

She could just straight out fight them, but Hailey was afraid that she would screw up the story line if she did that. So in the end her only choice left was to run. But she made a wrong turn and ended up running through an empty street.

"Cheetah channel," Hailey heard Ken say. Suddenly Ken jumped out in front of her and tried to attack. Hailey dodged and pulled out her staff. She whirled it around and blocked Chikusa's incoming needles.

As Hailey avoided more attacks she realized that they weren't attacking her seriously either. They were leading her somewhere. '_This isn't good. I get a bad feeling that if I keep going wherever they're pushing me to, I'm going to end up in a lot of pain_.' Hailey looked around and tried to find a good escape route. She wasn't going to go on the offensive unless she absolutely had to.

Hailey spotted a side alley and dove for it. She sprinted as fast as she could, but the two Kokuyo boys were hot on her heels. Dashing out of the end of the alley, Hailey found herself now running through Namimori park.

"Was it wise, not to go onto the offensive?" A smooth and horribly familiar voice said out of nowhere.

Hailey felt her heart beat become more erratic. Her breathing became labored, and she felt like she couldn't get enough air. Hailey collapsed to her hands and knees, one hand clutching her chest. Her vision was going blurry. The unfortunate girl looked around and saw she was surrounded by lemons. No…they were illusions.

Hailey forced herself to stand up and tried walking forward, but was only able to manage a couple steps before she started to fall again. This time an arm caught her around her waist. Hailey looked up and saw a flash of red and heard a creepy laugh before she completely blacked out.

* * *

><p>Alicia tripped. She looked around and became extremely infuriated. She had just pulled a Tsuna and tripped on air! And for some reason her heart was racing. It made her feel uneasy. She walked forward unconsciously, thinking about what could possibly have made her feel so anxious.<p>

She looked up at the sound of Nami middle's school anthem. It stopped once Hibari answered his phone. Behind Hibari was Tsuna and Reborn.

"Yeah, that's right," Hibari said to the person on the other side of the phone. He turned to Tsuna, who freaked out a little. "Isn't Sasagawa Ryohei one of your friends? They got him."

Tsuna jolted in shock. Ryohei was one of the strongest people who knew! How could he have been taken down? Tsuna raced to the hospital with Reborn standing on his shoulder. Alicia and Hibari trailed behind him.

"Herbivore."

"I'm not going to answer you unless I get some respect tonfa boy. We're evenly matched when fighting, so I demand to be upgraded to carnivore."

"Hn. I know you know where the leader to these attacks is."

"I might, I might not. What's it to you?"

"Tell me where they are."

Alicia pondered for a little bit. Should she go ahead and tell him? She was expecting Hailey to do it for her so that she wouldn't have to deal with the blood thirsty tonfa brat…. "Kokuyo Land, in the theater. You should look for the guy with blue hair cut like a pineapple, he's the leader."

Without a word of thanks, Hibari turned and left.

Tsuna ran into the hospital and burst into Ryohei's room. "Big brother! Are you alright?"

Ryohei looked over. He was covered in bandages and had a cast covering his left hand. "Oh, it's you, Sawada. It's a little pathetic, but he got me."

Alicia leaned against the wall next to the door, while Reborn hopped up onto the stool next to Sasagawa's bed.

"Hiiie!" Tsuna clutched his head, "Why did this happen to you?"

"How are you doing?" Reborn asked.

"I've got a few broken bones," Ryohei raised his bandaged hand to his chest, "Even though I had my guard up, he was a fearsome man."

"Eh! You saw the culprit?" Tsuna leaned forward a little bit.

"Yeah," Ryohei continued calmly, "The uniforms are from Kokuyo Middle School, from the next town over."

"What? They're middle-schoolers?" Tsuna asked in astonishment.

"Yeah. You be careful too, Sawada, Risa."

"You too?" Tsuna raised a hand in protest, "But I'm not involved in this."

"But damn. I WANT THAT GUY'S PUNCH IN MY CLUB!" Ryohei suddenly yelled.

Tsuna stared at the older boy dumbfounded. Boxing at a time like this?

Reborn held up a golden pocket watch. "Is this yours?"

Ryohei calmed down again. "No, I heard it was on my chest when they found me."

Reborn flipped the watch open and looked inside.

"Changing the subject," Ryohei said, turning his attention back to Tsuna, "I haven't honestly told Kyoko about this yet. She worries a lot. Please don't let this get out."

"Huh?" Tsuna started to ask, but the door slid open again.

"Big brother," Kyoko said as she ran in, "why did you climb the bathhouses' chimney?"

Tsuna's mouth dropped open slightly. '_What kind of story did he tell her?_' Tsuna thought flabbergasted.

'_How on earth does she actually believe those kinds of lies?_' Alicia thought sardonically.

"Big brother, is it really just a sprain?" Kyoko asked worriedly.

"Yeah," Ryohei lied easily.

'_That's too unbelievable!_' Tsuna thought in shock.

"I don't believe it!" Kyoko argued, "Do they make you stay at the hospital for a sprain?"

"It's a really bad sprain," Ryohei supplied with ease.

"But, I'm so glad," Kyoko sniffed and wiped her eye, "that you're still alive."

"I told you not to cry," Ryohei said uncomfortably.

"Un," Kyoko nodded. "Tsuna-kun, Reborn-kun, Risa-chan, you came to see him too! Thank you."

"Yeah," Tsuna nodded.

Alicia turned and left the room with Tsuna and Reborn following after so that they could leave the siblings to themselves.

'_Why did he have to get attacked? What in the world is going on?_' Tsuna shouted incredulously in his mind while clutching and his head.

"You aren't the only one who's panicking, Tsuna," Reborn turned and told his student. Tsuna looked around and noticed a bunch of kids from his school hanging around the hospital.

Reborn walked around to the other victims to view their condition while Tsuna talked to another student. When he came back the two boys were cheering up from the news that Hibari went to confront the attackers. Suddenly Leon's tail fell off and onto the ground.

"Ah! What's that?" Tsuna said panicky.

The tail wriggled on Reborn's hand. "Leon's tail was cut."

"Do chameleons lose their tails?" Tsuna asked sarcastically, crouching next to Tsuna.

"This occurrence is… ominous," Reborn looked up slowly. He glanced over at Alicia who had sighed and looked out the window with knowing eyes.

'_So Hibari has fallen,_' she thought to herself. '_I guess Hailey is at Nami middle right now, ready to lead Yamamoto to Gokudera and Tsuna later._' Alicia turned and watched as Leon changed into different objects rapidly. Tsuna was freaking out and demanding why Leon was acting that way and Reborn was explaining.

"Out of the way!" A doctor yelled. "Another Namimori student was attacked."

Tsuna watched as another disciplinary member was rolled passed him.

"That's the vice chairman of the disciplinary committee, Kusakabe-san!" A student cried out.

"They say he was attacked as soon as he left the hospital," another student said worriedly.

Reborn tossed Leon to Tsuna to look after while he went to go check out Kusakabe. He jumped up and took the watch that was lying on the vice chairman's chest. Clicking it open, he found the time pointing at four o' clock. Reborn walked over to Alicia. "What does this mean," he held up a list of names and the watch.

"I'm sure you figured it out already," Alicia said smoothly, without looking toward him. She reached into her bag and pulled out a file. She tossed it to Reborn. "Hailey said to give this to you later and that she would be expecting a favor in return. She also said to call Dino to collect the rest of the information that she sent to him."

Reborn glanced quickly at the contents and frowned a little. "Hm."

"Hey, what are you doing?" Tsuna asked as he walked up with a rice cooker Leon.

Reborn looked back at the watch. "There's no mistake. They're trying to pick a fight with you."

"Eh? Picking a fight with me? What do you mean?"

Reborn held up the watch and explained to Tsuna about the list found and the order that they students were being attacked. Then he explained how it was all to draw out Tsuna, since he was the next Vongola boss.

Alicia stood up and walked over to Reborn, observing and analyzing the situation. Suddenly Alicia started coughing violently and collapsed against the wall for support.

"Risa-san!" Tsuna yelled. "Risa-san what's wrong?"

"Shut up….I'm fine…." Risa panted. She froze as her heart gave a jolt. Her eyes widened. "Hai…ley….?...Hailey!" Alicia stood up and pushed away the nurses that had come over to check on her. She staggered toward the door.

Reborn jumped in front of frantic twin. "Hold it Alicia. Take Tsuna with you to Nami middle."

"What? Why should I? I'm not even going there!" Alicia protested, holding her stomach.

"Tsuna needs to find and warn number three. Meanwhile you should look for number two."

"I don't have time for that dammit!" Alicia shouted, "They got Hailey!"

"What?" Tsuna started to freak out even more.

Reborn remained calm. "If you find number three and two, you'll probably meet the culprits and find out where your sister is."

Alicia knew he was right, and now that she calmed down a little she knew that Hailey would want her to make sure the story line went the way it was supposed to by taking Yamamoto to Tsuna and Gokudera. She clicked her tongue and motioned for Tsuna to follow. The two of them ran out of the hospital.

After running for a while Alicia sent Tsuna down a different street to look for Gokudera while she went towards their school to find Yamamoto. She burst into the classroom.

"Kiyomizu-san! What on earth- where have you been?" The teacher shouted.

Alicia ignored him. "Yamamoto! Come with me," she grabbed his arm and dragged him with her.

"Oi! Risa, where're we going?" Yamamoto said, walking unsteadily behind her. Both of them ignored the teacher yelling after them.

Alicia let go of his arm and broke into a run again. "You need to help your friends."

Yamamoto became more serious and followed after her.

"Here," Alicia tossed Yamamoto's special bat to him as they ran. "You're probably going to need this."

Yamamoto smiled and nodded. He swung the strap around his shoulder and the two ran toward the shopping district and his friends.

* * *

><p>"It's not over yet. Two times the bombs!" Gokudera yelled and threw the bombs.<p>

"What a one trick pony," Chikusa muttered. He threw his yo-yo's and put out the dynamite that was thrown at him, but three smaller sticks were hidden in the mix and hit the Kokuyo boy sending him to his knee.

"Eat that. You were taken by a simple trick," Gokudera said smugly as he sat up. He explained his trick to the enemy before him. "Don't underestimate the Vongola. Die." More sticks of dynamite rained down on Chikusa and detonated.

Tsuna finally spotted Gokudera and ran up to him, shouting his name.

"Hm?" Gokudera turned around, "Juudaime! Why are you here?"

"Well I…I came to tell you that you were being targeted by guys from Kokuyo Middle School."

Gokudera looked elated. "You came all the way here just to tell me?" He sat up in a respectful manner. "I'm overjoyed. I just took him out!"

"Eh!"

Gokudera looked over at the smoking spot on the street where Chikusa had gone down. "I killed him, right over there." The smoke from the explosion cleared. "What? He's gone!"

"You saved me the trouble," the emotionless voice said to their side.

Tsuna turned to see a bloodied and battered Kokuyo student. "Hiiiiee!"

Chikusa threw his yo-yo and several needles at Tsuna who just squeezed his eyes shut and raised an arm to block his face. Tsuna looked up as he heard the needles hit flesh, but felt no pain.

Gokudera had taken the hit for him.

"Gokudera-kun."

"Juudaime…please run." Gokudera collapsed.

"Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna shouted in concern. He knelt by his silver haired friend and shook him, trying to wake his self-proclaimed right hand man wake up. "Are you alright? Gokudera-kun? _Gokudera-kun_!" Tsuna stood up with a small shriek as Chikusa limped toward him.

"I'll break you, then take you with me. Let's get this over with," Chikusa said wearily.

Tsuna could only stare in fear. He was too afraid to even run.

Chikusa threw his yo-yo again.

Tsuna shrieked. But before he could get hit someone pushed him down. Tsuna looked up to see Yamamoto sitting next to him.

Yamamoto smiled. "We've slid over to home plate, safe and sound."

"Yamamoto!" Tsuna said thankfully.

"Risa and I were running by and heard the ruckus. We came and…" Yamamoto's eyes narrowed angrily, "What's happening isn't good." Yamamoto looked up and glared at Chikusa furiously.

"You're in the way." Chikusa threw his yo-yo again only to have the yo-yo cut in half, by Yamamoto's bat turned sword.

"He cut it!" Tsuna shouted, "Since when did Yamamoto start carrying a bat around!"

"I see." Chikusa put his glasses back on, "You're Namimori Middle School, 1-A, seat number 15: Yamamoto Takeshi."

"What of it?" Yamamoto said coldly.

Chikusa threw another yo-yo, but before Yamamoto could cut it there was a shot and the string yo-yo burst into pieces. Chikusa, Yamamoto, and Tsuna turned to see who had shot the weapon.

Tsuna shrank back a little. Standing off to their side was an absolutely furious Alicia holding a gun. She pointed it at the Kokuyo boy. "Where is Hailey?" Alicia demanded. Her voice could cut steel.

Chikusa stared at her. "Kiyomizu Hailey is not here."

Alicia shot the ground by his feet. "Where did you guys take her you Kokuyo bastards!"

"This way officer!" A citizen leading the police yelled.

"What are you kids doing?" An officer yelled at them.

Chikusa looked back at Yamamoto. "You're Ken's target. Fighting you would be a pain." He turned and started to walk away. "I want to take a shower."

"Hold it!" Alicia yelled and started to run after him, but Yamamoto held her back and shook his head. "Damn it!" Some tears slid down her face. Alicia went limp and Yamamoto let go of her.

Yamamoto and Tsuna turned their attention back to Gokudera.

"Gokudera-kun! Are you alright?"

Yamamoto shook the silverette a little. "Hang in there, Gokudera!"

Alicia bent down and pulled and arm around her shoulders. Realizing what she was doing, Yamamoto did the same. "Follow me," Alicia said stiffly. She led them to Nami middle's nurse's office.

Alicia and Yamamoto set Gokudera down gently on the bed. Since Shamal didn't want to deal with guys, Alicia tended to Gokudera. She cleaned and wrapped his wound as well as provide him with an oxygen mask to ease his breathing a little. When she finished she went off and sat by the far wall so that she could think. She ignored their antics and the arrival of Bianchi.

She watched as Tsuna stepped outside the room. She knew that he was regretting looking for Gokudera and that Reborn was going to explain the breakout to Tsuna. Alicia figured that she would end up leading Tsuna and his friends to Kokuyo land in the place of her sister. But she would have to avoid the fights. If Hailey was with her, then she would just lazily sit out of the fights while Hailey sat by Reborn and watched. But Alicia knew she couldn't act like that when she felt so anxious.

Perhaps she could use that. She was too pissed off to fight the small fry, therefore leaving the fights up to the others to take care of. She could even taunt the enemy a little. But first she had to discuss with Reborn about telling Lambo, I-pin, and Shamal about watching over Kyoko and Haru.

* * *

><p>Hailey opened up her eyes to see a dimly lit room. She was sitting on the floor, propped up against a dirty, old, green couch. Her wrists were tied behind her back. She looked around and tried to work out the kink in her neck.<p>

"Kufufufu, it seems the little white kitty is awake."

Hailey stiffened. '_Ugh, that annoying laugh_.' She looked around to see Rokudo Mukuro sitting in the armchair beside her. She sighed. "How irritating. And I was planning to stay out of the mess you made, too."

Mukuro laughed again. "If you answer my questions, I might just let you go free."

"Sure. Go for it," Hailey said before yawning.

"Oh? So easy? Then who is Vongola the tenth?"

"A person."

"Where is he?"

"A place."

"What is his name?"

"Something his mother and father decided."

"Kufufufu, you have a rather smart mouth." Mukuro said amusedly.

"Hey, you said I had to answer your questions. You never said how. At least I didn't lie. Now if you'll excuse me, seeing as how I kept my end of the deal I would like to go."

Mukuro laughed again. "I said I _might_ let you go free. I never said I would for sure."

"Ah, too bad! Cause I'm outta here!" Hailey jumped up and ran, the ropes falling off her wrists. The minute she woke up Hailey started cutting her bindings.

She ran the building, fully aware that Ken was chasing after her. Hailey knew she couldn't get away because she was still weak from the relapse. But that wasn't her aim. She spotted the door that would lead her to her target and dove inside, closing the door after her.

She looked around the dark room and spotted Hibari lying on the floor unconscious. She had to work quick, Ken would find her soon enough. She took out a small roll of bandages that she had started carrying with her a few days ago and started fixing up Hibari's wounds. Suddenly his hand shot up and grabbed her wrist.

"Hold still Hibari, I'm going to take care a few of your wounds. We need to set the broken bones properly so it doesn't heal crooked."

Hibari let go of her arm. "Not needed herbivore."

"If you want another chance to fight the jerk then you need to have healed some amount! You won't get another chance if you can't walk!" Hailey was panting. She was running out of energy pretty fast.

Hibari studied her a little then turned away. Hailey figured this was his way of agreeing so she bent down and bandaged as much as she could. She used nearby poles lying on the ground to help set the broken bones properly and cleaned up a few of the more major cuts. When she finished she collapsed on the floor next to Hibari breathing hard.

"Found you, byon!" Ken came into the room. He picked Hailey up and threw her over his shoulder, dodging Hibari's tonfas as he left.

Hibari propped himself against the wall and looked down at his hand. Before the animal boy had taken Hailey away, she had slipped a small note into his hand. Hibari unfolded a note and felt a small pill fall onto his palm.

_Hibari,_

_Since you don't really seem to mind pushing your body so hard I figured I would leave this medicine for you. It has some healing properties, but more than that it is an extremely strong pain reliever. It'll take a while for it to take effect, so you should take it right now. This way when you get your next chance to fight Mukuro you won't be distracted by something as simple as pain._

_Have fun beating the crap out of him,_

_Hailey_ ;p

Hibari smirked. This herbivore was definitely amusing. He swallowed the pill, then started to plot out a way out of the room to get his revenge.

* * *

><p><strong>And that, dear readers, would be the end of another chapter. Let me know what you think!<strong>

**Oh, and I must apologize. I have a really bad attitude of going with the opposite of whatever anyone tells me to do. I mean, your answers helped me decide, but I'm sorry if it's not the pairing you hoped for.**

**I decided that I would pair Alicia and Tsuna, then Hailey with Hibari since Hailey's the only one who can really tolerate him and avoid getting bitten to death. When I looked at the major battles that I wrote out, I found that Hailey's true feelings didn't fit very well with Tsuna, that and the idea of Alicia bullying/being a mother hen to Tsuna rather amusing.**

**REVIEWS make authors happy!**

**Buh bye! (^w^)v**


	11. Chapter XI

**Hi! Sorry this came out a little later than the others. My classes are really starting to crunch down now and I have a few quiz's coming up :p. My friend Lily (winterlily24) just got out of the hospital, so yay! However she was a little sad to see that he stories didn't get many reviews, so she got really lazy and decided she could hold off a little longer on updating her stories! Please encourage her!**

**I hope you like this chapter as well! Thanks to all of those who reviewed! **

**I read the reviews several times and it made me feel all warm and fuzzy, and I suddenly had the energy to type up the rest of my chapter! ^w^ Please review some more!**

* * *

><p>Chapter XI<p>

"This isn't even funny," Tsuna muttered to himself as he walked down the empty street. "I can't work for the mafia. But at this rate-"

"No matter how much you run, they'll keep coming after you," a voice said to Tsuna's right.

Tsuna straightened and looked around. He saw Reborn supporting himself on the wall next to him, his elbows on the wall with his head propped up on his hands.

Reborn crossed his arms. "And on top of that, don't forget what they've done to find you."

Tsuna thought about Ryohei in the hospital; Kyoko crying from her worry; Gokudera getting stabbed by the needles; and Alicia crying.

"That's…I think what they're doing is wrong, involving everyone like that." Tsuna frowned. "Mukuro makes me angry! But…"Tsuna looked down again, losing his anger. "Hailey-chan is missing and even Hibari-san hasn't returned. There's no way Dame-Tsuna could defeat a guy like that. It's reckless."

"But the people around you don't think so," Reborn countered.

Tsuna turned when he heard someone running up to them. "Wha?"

Gokudera stood before Tsuna like nothing had happened. He jabbed his thumb at himself. "Take me with you, tenth!"

"Gokudera-kun!"

"I'll bring their lives to an end!"

"H-How are your wounds?"

Gokudera turned to the side smugly. "Just scratches." He trailed off as he got dizzy.

Yamamoto walked up next to Gokudera. "I'll go too, Tsuna."

"Yamamoto!"

"I heard it from the kid. You're playing mafia with another school."

Tsuna stared as Yamamoto incredulously. '_You're being duped, Yamamoto._'

"I'll go too," a female voice said from behind Gokudera and Yamamoto. "I'm worried about Hayato."

Gokudera fell to the ground in shock of seeing his sister's face.

Reborn hopped over the wall and landed in front of the group. "You'll be coming with us, right Alicia?"

Tsuna looked around and spotted Alicia leaning against the telephone pole. He hadn't even noticed her walking up.

Alicia eyed each member of the group critically. "Fine. But you better not hold me back. My concern is Hailey. I won't be participating in any of the fights."

Reborn turned his back to the group. "We've got the people we need to charge into enemy territory."

"Huh?" Tsuna looked around to Reborn.

"I know where their hideout is, thanks to Hailey. Their captives should be there."

"Captives?"

Reborn lowered his head slightly. "People you know very well."

"Reborn," Alicia shrugged herself away from the pole and walked over to the baby hitman. "Speaking of tomorrow, there's something we need to discuss."

Reborn hopped up onto Alicia's shoulder. "I suppose you want to talk in private."

Alicia nodded.

"Hm. Let's go."

Alicia and Reborn walked away, leaving the rest of the group to discuss a time to meet up the next day.

* * *

><p>Hailey opened her eyes blearily and sighed.<p>

She was right back where she started. Of course she knew this would happen when she made a run for it, but part of her was secretly hoping she would manage to find a way out. Her hands were tied behind her back once again, but this time they tied her ankles too.

"Kufufufu. Let's try this again, shall we?" Mukuro emerged from the shadows and sat down on the couch next to Hailey.

"Uuuuugh!" Hailey complained. "Why even bother! You know I have nothing to say to you."

"Oya? Well then how about I talk for a while." Mukuro picked Hailey up by her collar and slammed her against the wall. She glared at him, refusing to make a sound that would indicate that it hurt. "Kufufufu. You're as tough as that duck downstairs. You know, for someone who's already died once, I would think that you'd be a little more…sturdy. To fall ill is very humorous to me."

"I may have died, but I'm still human just like you. Now hands off you jerk!" Hailey tried to shove Mukuro away with her knees, but it had no effect.

"Oya, oya. So you already know how similar we are. Kufufufufu. Then you should be willing to help me, no?"

"I see no reason why I should."

Mukuro threw Hailey into the side wall. He walked over and pulled her up by her bangs. Hailey glared, ignoring the blood dripping down her face from her head wound, and kept trying to kick Mukuro. "Do you know about the consequences to the special rule that was created for the souls sent on trials?"

Hailey just ignored him and tried to shove him away. Mukuro kicked Hailey who rolled to a stop. She panted and tried to push herself to her knees using her head.

"I'm sure they told you. But you probably didn't think they would take it seriously. Do you know what happens when you break that rule?" Mukuro grabbed Hailey's upper arm and pulled her closer, so that she was looking directly at him. "If any of the people you interacted with in this world is unable to forget about you after your trial ends and you leave, then they are all killed."

Hailey's pupils contracted in shock.

"Those little children you're looking after seem to have gotten quite attached to you. I'm sure their past the point of ever forgetting you and your sister. I wonder if I should ease their pain and take care of them before your adviser does."

"You're lying…" There was no confidence in Hailey's voice.

"Your second mission, after your initial trial, is to disappear and be forgotten by everyone in this world. But what if they cannot forget? How are the advisors supposed to deal with that then?"

Hailey paled. That couldn't be true…right? Heaven wouldn't kill a bunch of innocent people just because of that…

Mukuro laughed and dragged Hailey over to the theater room. He climbed up onto the stage and dumped Hailey on the floor, while he sat down on the couch.

Hailey didn't move. She couldn't think, her brain felt like it was dumped in tar. If that was true, then she was about to be the reason six innocent kids were going to die. She was sure that she distanced herself enough from Tsuna and his friends, but Alison, Zach, Alex, Luca, Michael, and Angelo… David must have known, so why didn't he stop her?

Mukuro smiled sadly. "Did you know that this is the third world I've been to?"

Hailey looked over, trying to mask her distress.

"I broke the rule as well in my trial world. The result was an entire city's destruction. Because so many had to die, I was punished by getting sent through hell several times before finally getting dumped here."

"Why are you telling me this?" Hailey whispered.

"I suppose it's because I would like for you to tell me what my purpose in this world is."

"I'm beginning to wonder as well," Hailey muttered.

* * *

><p>"What is this?" Yamamoto bent down to examine a footpaw print. "Looks like animal footprints."

Reborn, who was sitting on Yamamoto's shoulder, looked up. "Something's coming."

Alicia jogged backwards a little. A second later something jumped out of the bushes and made a dive for Yamamoto, passing through the spot Alicia had been moments ago. The baseball player jumped out of the way and landed on his back. The impact resulted in the ground underneath him breaking and he fell through. The thing that attacked him jumped into the hole after Yamamoto.

Reborn confirmed that Tsuna's memory of the place was accurate, it was just a mud slide that had covered the flora and fauna exhibit.

"Are you alive, baseball-nut?" Gokudera called down.

Yamamoto sat up and laughed to ease his friends worries. The others warned him of the other who had jumped in after him. Yamamoto fought Ken, but had a difficult time. Reborn kicked the worrying Tsuna into the exhibit as well, which lead to Yamamoto becoming more serious because of his friend in danger and win his fight against Ken. All the while believing that it was all just a game where you didn't have to hold back.

Tsuna and Yamamoto looked back up at the hole and wondered how to get back to the others. Suddenly a rope with a loop at the end came down.

"One of you step through the loop, then we'll pull you up!" Alicia called. She had brought a few supplies with her, knowing that it would probably be needed. Tsuna was pulled up first, then Yamamoto. A first aid kit was also supplied by Alicia.

As she tended to Yamamoto's wound, she wondered how they dealt with this stuff in the manga and anime. She didn't remember reading or watching about how they got Yamamoto and Tsuna out. She could understand Bianchi tending to Yamamoto's wound, but the whole stuck several feet below the ground with no escape thing baffled her.

Alicia went to scout out the area ahead of them a bit while Reborn explained more about Rokudo Mukuro and the other escapees. If she remembered correctly then M.M. was going to show up next. Then that sadistic pervert named Birds. Lanchia, as Mukuro's shadow, would arrive after Fuuta tried to make Tsuna go back. Tsuna was supposed to meet Mukuro in the forest when he chases after Fuuta. Should she interfere then? That would mess with the story though.

Alicia settled with her original plan of taking a nap with Reborn. Even though she was agitated and Hailey wasn't here, she couldn't think of any other way to keep herself out of the commotion. Alicia wondered back over to the group and sat down, leaning against the table.

* * *

><p>"<em>This isn't good!" Tsuna said worriedly.<em>

_Yamamoto was about to hop over the table but Gokudera held him back. "Stop, Yamamoto." Yamamoto looked down at Gokudera. "She touched it." Yamamoto looked back at the fight between M.M. and Bianchi._

_M.M. put her clarinet to her lips intending to blow Bianchi to smithereens only to freak out because her clarinet was melting from poison cooking. M.M. screamed._

"_Her clarinet," Yamamoto said, stunned._

_Tsuna stared at the fight in horror and shock. "Is that Bianchi's attack?"_

"_That's right," Gokudera confirmed in dread, "Her ultimate dish, making anything she touches into poison cooking."_

"_Thousand Poisonous Flowers!" Bianchi said fiercely. _

"_That's…impossible…" M.M. fell to the ground, twitching from the poison._

"_Are you alright?" Bianchi asked and ran over to Reborn. "I'm so glad that we didn't interrupt your nap!"_

"_When did Reborn…?" Tsuna questioned no one in particular._

"_So sis fought to protect Reborn's sleep?" Gokudera asked dumfounded._

"_Love is victorious," Bianchi said, turning back to M.M. who then passed out._

"_Bianchi is to be feared…" Tsuna muttered, horrified._

_Yamamoto just smiled, unfazed by her actions. "Good job."_

_A creepy high pitched laugh came from where M.M. had appeared from. "I am quite glad that, that avaricious girl M.M. has been beaten." The group turned to see an old man with a couple of birds resting on his shoulder and hat._

"_Who are you?" Tsuna asked._

_The man smiled. "Now calm down and look at this." The man pushed a button and Haru and Kyoko were projected onto the wall. "Your friends are being targeted."_

_The man introduced himself as birds and the disfigured people threatening Kyoko and Haru as the Bloody Twins. Birds ordered someone to attack Tsuna unless they wanted the two girls to get hurt. Bianchi finally gave and hit Tsuna, though it wasn't very hard. _

_Birds being a sadistic jerk, threw a sword and ordered Tsuna to stab himself once again threatening Kyoko and Haru. Just in time, Shamal, I-pin and Lambo were able to take on the twins and send Kyoko and Haru to safety._

"_I'm glad I followed Haru-san like I was asked," I-pin said to the camera._

"_His instinct was right on." Shamal added._

_Tsuna remembered Reborn calling over I-pin and whispering something to her before they left the house that morning. "He couldn't have-" _

_There was a chuckle._

_Tsuna turned around. "Reborn! You…"_

"_You should be glad that you have a family that will look out for you when you're in trouble."_

_Tsuna rubbed his nose, embarrassed. "Yeah. Eh, we're not a family!"_

_Yamamoto, Gokudera, and Bianchi approached Birds as threatening as they could. Birds tried to leave, but was knocked out with a single kick to the face by Gokudera._

* * *

><p>Alicia stood up, yawning loudly.<p>

"You! You stupid sour twin! You slept this whole time while we all had to work? Juudaime almost got stabbed!" Gokudera yelled furiously.

Alicia glanced at the blade for a second before yawning again. "Yeah, and he would have died instantly if he was even scratched by that too."

"What?" Gokudera shouted.

"It's laced with poison. Lucky Reborn and I thought of I-pin and Shamal, though I guess Lambo was an extra bonus. Not that he did much."

"And you didn't help?" Gokudera demanded.

"I already told you. This isn't my fight. This is for the Vongola Juudaime to take care of, as per order from Nono. Anyways, Reborn," Alicia turned to look at the small hitman, "I asked Dino to look into those other escapees, so why on earth would you trust Dino when he said they didn't matter."

Reborn made a pouty face. "But, but Dino never said you were the one who told him about this."

Alicia rolled her eyes. "Spare me."

* * *

><p>Hailey was lying on her side staring blankly at the ground. She was still trying to figure out how she should proceed with her and Alicia's trial. She also had to figure out what she was going to do with the kids.<p>

Mukuro had left. He probably went to go check on Chikusa as well as send out M.M., Birds, the Bloody Twins, and Lanchia. Hailey figured Alicia was with Tsuna, but staying out of the fights. She wondered what her sister was doing instead so that she could avoid fighting. Hailey chuckled. Alicia was probably taking a nap.

"In a better mood I see." Mukuro walked back into the room. Fuuta followed silently behind him and stopped at stood off to the side of the door.

Hailey sighed. '_Alright! It's decided! I'll have David promise to look after the kids when Alicia and I leave this world. I won't worry about it. This is only distracting me from my mission, and I'm sure Alicia had already guessed this much, so I shouldn't be surprised either! And I've kept a good distance from Tsuna, so everything will be ok!_' Hailey frowned determinedly.

Mukuro chuckled and crouched next to Hailey. He brushed the tip of his trident against her, trying to threaten her a little. "Found your resolve already? I'm sure you're already aware that Decimo and his friends are here. They defeated Ken, M.M., Birds, the twins, and Lanchia. Though I was surprised how quick Lanchia took to Decimo. He was about to give away my secret, and would have succeeded if I hadn't sent Chikusa to dispatch him for me."

Hailey just glared at him.

"Why not tell me some of Decimo's secrets. He seemed to become more wild when he fought my shadow. Is it some kind of special bullet?"

Hailey turned away pointedly to indicate she wasn't answering.

"Kufufufu, rather stubborn aren't you. No matter, Decimo seems to be out of that special bullet. When he comes here, he'll be falling right into my hands. I wonder if you'll assist me." Mukuro cut Hailey's cheek with his trident. "Oya? So even if you are human, the already deceased can't be manipulated."

Hailey stuck her tongue out at the boy.

"Hm. But you'll still be assistance to me." Mukuro smirked. A lemon formed in front of Hailey, causing her breathing to become labored. "That's more like it. I'm sure Decimo and your sister will be much more concerned now."

There was a loud boom. Someone must have set off an explosion. Someone, meaning Gokudera.

Mukuro laughed a little and sat down on the couch behind Hailey to wait for Decimo and his tutor to arrive.

* * *

><p>"Mukuro's close," Reborn reminded the group.<p>

Reborn, Bianchi, and Tsuna peeked into the theater. Alicia chose to hang back a little till they started to walk in.

"Ah!" Tsuna started when he saw the boy he met in the forest inside the room.

"I'm glad we could meet again," the boy said calmly.

Bianchi stepped inside the room as well.

Tsuna ran in a little. "Is this where you're being held?" Tsuna turned back to his companions to explain. "This is the Kokuyo student I met earlier. He's being held here."

The boy laughed a little. "Please take your time. We're about to start a long relationship together, Vongola the tenth."

"Eh? How do you know I'm Vongola?" Tsuna stared at the boy.

"Wait, Tsuna," Reborn said.

"That's not it Tsuna," Bianchi walked over to Tsuna, "He's…"

The boy chuckled some more. "That's right. I'm the real" he raised his head, revealing his mismatched eyes, "Rokudo Mukuro."

A shape started taking shape at the floor in front of Mukuro.

"Hailey!" Alicia shouted and started forward.

"Stop!" Hailey shouted. Alicia froze. Hailey panted a pit before she spoke again. "You're not supposed to be here right now. Go do your part." Hailey closed her eyes.

Alicia could tell her sister was in pain. "Are you crazy? I'm getting you out of here first!" Alicia started forward again.

"You idiot!" Hailey yelled. She started to argue with her sister again, this time in a series of different languages.

Reborn tried to keep up, but they kept changing the grammatical style as well. And he was sure that there were a few languages that they probably made up mixed in as well. The two girls avoided Japanese and Italian entirely. Reborn did manage to catch one word. It was in English, the word 'trial'. He wondered what that could possibly mean.

Alicia punched the wall in frustration. Whatever the two had argued about, it seemed Hailey won. Hailey went limp, breathing harder than ever.

"Fine!" Alicia left the room.

Mukuro laughed lightly. "My, my. I wonder what that was all about. Using so much energy for that, it must have been important. No matter, I can find out later."

The door slammed closed behind Tsuna, Reborn, and Bianchi.

Tsuna and the others whirled. Tsuna's eyes widened in shock. "Ah! Fuuta!"

* * *

><p>Alicia was really mad now. She had finally located Hailey, just to be sent away again.<p>

Hailey had argued with her that their trial was more important and that she wouldn't die anyways so it would be fine. She wanted Alicia to go make sure Hibari was released and took the antidote for the sakura disease. Then Alicia was supposed to lead Hibari to Mukuro.

Alicia cursed and grumbled the whole way. She glared at random inanimate objects like they were doing her some wrong just by being there.

'_Arg! I really just want to beat the crap out of somebody!_' Alicia screamed in her head.

Suddenly a body flew past her and out the window. Alicia was able to recognize Chikusa before he fell completely out of sight. Alicia looked back to see Hibari standing in front of a hallway.

She grinned. Perfect.

Hibari noticed Alicia grinning and narrowed his eyes. To Alicia's delight he charged at her, so Alicia ran forward as well. But as she raised a fist to attack she froze and had to dodge Hibari's blow at the last minute.

"Arg!" She clutched her head in frustration. "I can't fight you right now dammit! Hailey will get mad at me!" Hibari stopped attacking her. Alicia pointed a finger at him. "After you beat Mukuro and heal up some we're going to fight again! I want you in top condition so that when I'm standing victorious, my victory will be that much sweeter, you got that!"

Hibari smirked and put his tonfas away. The two of them walked down to Gokudera.

Alicia poked Gokudera. "Hey! Octopus head! Shamal gave you the cure to sakura-kura right?"

"Knock it off, stupid loud mouth!" Gokudera tried to slap her hand away, but missed. He pulled the bag Shamal had given him and tossed it to Hibari.

When Hibari didn't do anything with it Alicia raised an eyebrow. "What? You just going to fall for the same trick twice?" She taunted.

Hibari frowned a little and threw the bag back at Gokudera. Alicia noticed him taking the medicine before tossing it back.

Hibari and Alicia eat pulled one of Gokudera's arms around their shoulders and hoisted him up.

"Man, I seem to be carrying you around a lot lately," Alicia complained. She ignored Gokudera's own complaints as she and Hibari carried him toward the others.

* * *

><p>"Mukuro, don't be so sure of yourself. I'm the best at-home tutor," Reborn said confidently.<p>

Mukuro suddenly turned and deflected the object thrown at him.

"Juudaime, please get down!" Dynamite detonated and blew all the snakes away.

The smoke cleared to show Gokudera being supported by Hibari and Alicia.

"Sorry we're late," Gokudera said,

"Hibari-san! Gokudera-kun! You're both…" Tsuna's eyes shone with happiness.

"Do you understand now?" Reborn said to Mukuro. "Tsuna isn't the only one I raised."

Mukuro's eyes narrowed in irritation.

"I've paid you back now." Hibari dropped Gokudera's arm.

"And I don't feel like helping you anymore." Alicia also let go of Gokudera's arm, resulting in Gokudera being thrown back.

Tsuna stared at the scene in a mixture of shock and concern.

Mukuro regained his composure. "My, my, there's a lot of spectators today. What is Chikusa doing?"

Gokudera leaned against the wall and smiled triumphantly. "The glasses guy and the animal guy are taking a nap together down below."

"I see," Mukuro said smoothly.

"Amazing!" Tsuna cheered, "Way to go, Gokudera-kun!"

Gokudera looked down ashamed. "It's not as if I beat them…"

Hibari ignored all of them and walked and picked up his tonfas. "Have you prepared yourself?"

"You're very scary," Mukuro turned to Hibari, "But please don't get between me and Vongola. Besides, you can barely stand right now. I've broken many of your bones, after all."

Hibari turned to Mukuro and held his weapons at the ready, ignoring Mukuro's prattle. "Have you prepared your last will?"

"You say such amusing things. I have no choice. I'd better take care of you first." The number in Mukuro's right eye changed from six to four and ignited with a light purple aura. He charged forward. "This will end in a moment."

The two sent one attack after another at each other. Tsuna couldn't even see because their attacks were so quick.

But Alicia had tuned it all out. She was concentrating on Hailey who was still lying next to the couch on the stage. Her breathing was a little less labored, but it looked like she still needed some rest before she would be alright.

Now that she had time to look, Alicia noticed that Hailey was banged up pretty bad as well. Blood had caked on, probably originating from some head wound; there was a fresh cut on her cheek; bruises on her neck indicated she was chocked; and her clothes revealed that Hailey had probably been thrown around which meant that there would be a lot of bruising and scratches.

The sound of a gunshot drew Alicia's attention back to the others in the room. She looked over in time to see Mukuro fall to the ground with a gun in his hand. So Mukuro was going to fight with possessed bodies now.

Alicia's eyes narrowed. Let the game officially begin.

* * *

><p>Hailey could hear them all fighting. But the stupid virus relapse made her feel really tired. At least it wasn't a real lemon. An illusion didn't have all the same adverse effects on her. But still, being down for the count was still annoying.<p>

She would use her flames, but no one but Tsuna was supposed to be able to call on their flames till they went to the future. And Tsuna wasn't supposed to know he would fight with flames till…oh wait, that was this battle.

Maybe she should open her eyes and watch after all…

Nah. It's not like she could do anything anyways.

Hailey decided she would just continue to slowly cut the rope binding her wrists. She was almost halfway through. She wondered if she had enough strength to just break the rest of it.

Better not risk it. She shouldn't use more strength than she could manage at the moment. Besides, if Alicia saw that she still had that much energy left, then Alicia would have her head for sure.

There were more sounds of fighting. More people seemed to have entered the fray.

Hailey could only assume that Mukuro was using the possession bullet and was using Gokudera, Bianchi, Chikusa, and Ken to fight Tsuna and Reborn. Hailey looked up to see Alicia leaning against the wall and watching the fight. Everyone seemed to have forgotten her as well as Hailey.

Alicia looked up to see Hailey staring at her. Hailey flicked her head to indicate that Alicia should leave the room and go check on Yamamoto.

Hailey chuckled when she saw Alicia click her tongue in frustration and walk out.

Hailey sat up when she finally released her hands and started fiddling with the knot holding the rope around her ankles together. She glanced up to see how the fight was going and saw an avalanche of bombs flying toward Tsuna. "Tsuna, look out!" Hailey yelled.

Hailey knew that Tsuna was going to be alright because she read the manga and watched the anime.

She knew Tsuna would live because she heard and saw Reborn shoot the new bullet in time.

She knew, but still… why was she so afraid?

Why did Tsuna and Hibari lying on their stomach with so many injuries make her blood run cold?

Is that what she looked like when she was hit by that car?

Is that same face that her parents saw?

Will Alicia and she look like that when they die in this world?

Hailey started shaking. She felt sick.

Only when Tsuna started to get up, did Hailey start feeling a little better again. She watched in awe as Tsuna defeated the Mukuro in Ken, Chikusa, Gokudera, and Bianchi in that order. She made sure to snap a quick picture of Tsuna in hyper dying will mode, she was sure Alicia would want to see it, then went back to untying her legs.

Suddenly Hailey was pulled up roughly and an arm wound around her neck, choking her slightly. Hailey tried to pull the arm away and looked back to see Mukuro.

"Mukuro! You dirty-" The rest of her words were blocked as Mukuro tightened his grip.

"Mukuro, let her go," Tsuna demanded calmly.

Mukuro laughed. "What are you going to do now Vongola Juudaime?"

Hailey managed to get the ropes around her ankles to fall off. "He's not going to do anything!" She kicked Mukuro, causing him to release her.

Tsuna caught Hailey before she could hit the ground and took her over to Reborn and the others in an instant.

Hailey stuck her tongue at Mukuro. "Sorry, but I'm not really the damsel in distress type. Now kick his butt Tsuna."

Tsuna charged after Mukuro again.

"Not the damsel in distress huh?" A voice said behind Hailey and Reborn.

"Yo! Alicia," Hailey said calmly and leaned back on her hands to watch the fight.

"If you aren't the damsel in distress type, then next time don't get kidnapped," Alicia continued to gripe.

Reborn smirked. "You information was quite helpful. Though I don't understand why you asked Dino to look up those other escapees."

"I had nagging suspicion that Mukuro found out about me and Alicia, and that he also herd about me getting infected with that virus. So I got things ready just in case," Hailey said with a smile.

"If you knew, then why didn't you do more to avoid it?" Alicia demanded furiously.

Hailey made a pouty face similar to the one Reborn made earlier that day. "But-but I had no way to know what day he would try to attack me."

Alicia slammed her head into the nearby wall in frustration.

"You're pretty efficient," Reborn commented, "You even asked Bianchi to bring an extra set of cloths for Tsuna."

Hailey laughed. "I wouldn't be doing my job properly if I didn't even pay attention to the details, now would I?" Hailey looked up at her sister to see her watching Tsuna. She smirked and looked back at the fight as well. "Looks pretty cool in hyper dying will mode huh? Though I do like it when he's a bumbling fool, he's so cute like that! But this way he inspires more confidence and trust, like he's capable of anything."

"It will definitely be interesting to watch his development," Alicia agreed.

Tsuna had turned his back to Mukuro because he refused to kill him, but this gave Mukuro an opening to grab Tsuna's arms from behind. Mukuro head butted Tsuna and kicked him toward the wall where the trident was sticking out.

"Go, Tsuna!" Reborn called out. "Show him the power of the X-Gloves!"

Tsuna blasted a large flame out behind him as thrust and used the dying will flames propulsion to charge toward the shocked Mukuro and knock him back. The flames cleansed Mukuro's dark aura as he was pushed back and into the floor near the base of the stage.

Hailey whistled. "Pretty amazing, wouldn't you say?"

"Cheh, still needs work." Alicia turned away with her eyes closed.

Reborn looked down at Mukuro. "It's over."

Tsuna nodded and let his flame go out. "Yeah. Ah! Everyone's hurt!"

"Nothing to worry about." Tsuna looked down at Reborn to see him holding a Leon phone to his ear. "The Vongola medical team has arrived. It looks like they were able to provide an antidote to Lanchia's poison."

"Thank goodness," Tsuna breathed out in relief. He looked back at Mukuro. "Mukuro. He's not dead, is he? Is he alright?"

"As soft as ever," Reborn softly reprimanded.

Alicia on the other hand wasn't so kind. Tsuna's comment had made a vein pop in irritation. She threw a piece of wood from the ground at his head. "Is he alright? Are you kidding me? He just tried to kill you and your friends and you ask if he's going to be _alright_? That softness is going to be the reason you die someday!"

Hailey laughed. "Now, now! That kindness and pure heart is a good thing! Besides, it's our job to prevent that right?"

"Are you kidding me? What type of attitude it that? You were almost killed to?" Alicia shook Hailey by the collar, but to her frustration Hailey continued to laugh. Alicia released her sister and opted out for banging her head against the wall several times. Tsuna laughed nervously, then turned back to Mukuro.

"Stay away from him- byon!" a gruff voice shouted. Tsuna, Reborn and the twins turned to see Ken and Chikusa dragging themselves to Mukuro. "Don't you mafia touch him."

"Why?" Tsuna asked. "Why do you go so far for Mukuro? You were possessed and used by Mukuro!"

"Don't talk to us like you understand," Chikusa muttered.

"This is nothing, compared to the suffering we endured back then." Ken tried to push himself off the ground.

Tsuna stared at them. "Back then?"

"What happened?" Reborn questioned. "Why do you hate the mafia so much?"

Ken looked up with a dark and manic expression. "We were used as guinea pigs for human experimentation by our own family."

"Just what I suspected," Reborn said expressionlessly. "You're members of the Estraneo Famiglia that created the forbidden Possession Bullet."

"Forbidden? You guys labeled that for your own convenience. Because of that our family was being completely destroyed." Ken explained everything that happened to their family after the Possession Bullet was labeled forbidden and how they met Mukuro.

Hailey looked away guiltily. When they were still training in this world, Hailey had remembered about Mukuro and his gang. She researched about them and was able to discover where they were being held. But when she asked if she could go save them, the elders had told her not to because it would alter the future. So Hailey had to live with that knowledge of other kids being hurt and she wasn't able to do anything about it.

There were a lot of people in Katekyo Hitman Reborn that Hailey wanted to help. But because it would alter the story line too much, she had to let things be. It always made her feel guilty, like she was responsible for these actions.

Mist floated towards everyone from the door.

Hailey and the rest looked around to see three men with bandaged faces.

"Vin…dice…" Hailey muttered. She and Alicia went stiff. They had heard some pretty nasty stories from their predecessors. The Perduto de Dimenticato and the Vendicare had a long history together, and not all of it was very pretty.

Chains shot out and cuffed Mukuro and his gang around the neck and started to drag them away.

"What are you doing?" Tsuna called after them.

"Quit it, Tsuna. Defying them will be trouble," Reborn informed his student.

"But-"

"This is the law."

"What will happen to them?" Tsuna asked, defeated. "Ah! And what about Lanchia-san?"

Reborn tilted his head down so that a shadow was cast over his eyes. "They will be judged and punished."

"Punished?"

"Who knows, but it won't be light." Reborn looked back up. "Our world isn't soft."

Two of the Vindice looked over at the twins.

Alicia hissed softly and Hailey tensed.

But the three cloaked mafia prison guards disappeared with Mukuro, Chikusa, and Ken. The Vongola medical team ran into the room and started to tend to the wounded.

Hailey and Alicia breathed out a sigh of relief. That was a little too close for comfort for them.

"That's it. I'm going to take a nice long nap," Hailey announced and collapsed unconscious.

Alicia sniggered as she watched her sister get wheeled away like all the others. In the end, Alicia was the only one who didn't fight or get hurt.

Actually she was the only one that remained conscious as well…

Alicia walked next to Tsuna as he was was placed on a stretched and wheeled out, Reborn was sleeping next to him.

She smiled and ruffled his hair. "You did well."

* * *

><p>"Hiiiiiiii~ Everyone!" Hailey sang as she skipped into the classroom. It was exactly one week after Hailey had been kidnapped.<p>

"Hailey-chan!" Kyoko smiled and hugged her. "I'm so glad you're feeling better! I can't believe you came down with another flu! That's so horrible! You have to take better care of your health."

Alicia and Tsuna could read the 'what-the-hell-are-you-talking-about' in Hailey's smile. Luckily for Alicia, her sister took it in her stride and played along. "Yup! I'm all good now! And I'm making sure to eat healthier for now on! I will not eat 32 bags of my favorite chips a day anymore! No, I will only eat 24!"

Alicia rolled her eyes and Tsuna stared at Hailey with a deadpan expression.

Yamamoto walked up laughed. "It's good to see your doing so much better, but make sure you don't push yourself too hard!"

"Aye, aye Captain!" Hailey saluted Yamamoto.

Alicia pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head.

Tsuna kept staring at Hailey completely dumbfounded. He had felt guilty about her injuries and kidnapping, because he honestly though that it was his fault that Hailey was targeted. Alicia had noticed and threatened Tsuna to feel better and to stop blaming himself because, in Alicia's words, 'it was god damn annoying, and he didn't need to get his panties in a knot for something so utterly ridiculous and she'll shoot him full of lead if she catches him worrying needlessly'. Now that he saw Hailey, he began to wonder how she could bounce back so easily.

"So annoying!" Alicia had finally snapped and was chasing Hailey around the room.

Hailey laughed and hid behind Tsuna. She clutched to the back of his shirt, using him as a human shield. "Tsuna! Tsuna! Tsuna! Alicia's going to hurt me! Protect me!"

"Hiiiie!" Tsuna was scared stiff from Alicia's pissed expression and Hailey wasn't helping at all.

"Oi! Whitey! Don't use Juudaime as your personal shield against your maniac sister!" Gokudera shouted.

"Now, now. They're just having fun!" Yamamoto smiled and tried to calm down Gokudera.

Hailey peered around Tsuna's side, then pulled down her eyelid a little and stuck out her tongue at Alicia.

Several veins popped and a dark shadow covered Alicia's eyes. She had to be held back by both Gokudera and Yamamoto so that she didn't kill Tsuna her attempt to annihilate her sister. "Why you little-! When I get my hands on you, you're dead!"

Tsuna was shaking violently from Alicia's outbursts, since he was still the one in the direct line of Alicia's attacks with Hailey still hiding behind him.

Hailey giggled. She shoved Tsuna lightly so that he bumped into Kyoko a little. A blush erupted across his face and he apologized profusely to the oblivious girl.

Hailey giggled and nodded at her work and walked over to her seat. "I'm so glad things are back to normal!"

She dodged Alicia's shoe thrown at her head.

* * *

><p><strong>So now you know the second mission that all Perduto de Dimenticato take on. Poor Hailey and Alicia didn't realize how harsh the punishment for breaking that rule is, so how will they handle it?<strong>

**Also I received a request to write a TYL section. I was wondering how many people would like to read one as well!**

**Thank you for reading! Please review and tell me how I did!**

**I'm grateful for the 399 visitors and 1,142 hits, but I only have 33 reviews and I would love to see more! **


	12. Chapter XII

**Sorry about the late update. I have a lot of school work right now, so I'm going to have to cut down my updates to about once a week. If I can I'll try to get out a few extras, otherwise that's all I can manage.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed! It made me happy and helped me push the extra mile to get this chapter out. I'm hoping for more reviews! Enjoy!**

* * *

><p>Chapter XII<p>

_Hailey had been feeling more tired lately. But she was already aware of her situation. Because of the accident that had led to her death in her previous life, Hailey knew that she had met all the requirements and was now nearing the end in this life. _

_Actually she could have gone back already, but because Alicia was still taking her trial, Hailey wanted to stay and help. So even if she was going to suffer a slow death in this world, she would stay behind. As long as Alicia needed her, she would continue to live._

_Hailey stumbled over the edge of the rug and fell. She was breathing hard and was shaking as she pushed herself off the ground. She was going to have to leave everyone. Perhaps Ali would know of a way to postpone Hailey's deterioration._

_All she needed was six more months. During that time she would be able to get her hands on Reborn's fedora and pacifier. After that she just had to hand them over to her sister and both of their missions would be complete._

_Hailey would die first, because of the conditions that was set. Then after Alicia handed over Reborn's possessions she would die. Hailey had already predicted that she would die of a gunshot._

"_Hailey!" Alicia shouted in concern. She ran over and helped her sister up._

"_I'm fine," Hailey waved her sister away. "After we give our report to Tsuna, I think we're going to have to disappear for a while."_

_Alicia frowned but nodded. "Your sight has gotten even worse, huh?"_

_Hailey chuckled sadly. "Yeah, it's almost completely gone. But please keep it a secret from the others."_

"_You're going to have to be careful," Alicia warned, "make sure you observe your surroundings. I don't want you falling on the ground again. After all we haven't checked the rest of your injuries yet."_

"_Yes, yes," Hailey teased. The two headed to the meeting room where the others would surely be._

_They knock softly on the door before entering. The group looked up and stared._

"_Alicia! Hailey, your back," Tsuna said softly. He frowned a little as he noted Hailey leaning heavily on her sister. "Did you get injured? You should have gone to the medical center first."_

_Hailey waved him away. "I'm fine. Just a little tired."_

"_In any case we have a report to make. Then we'll be on our way again," Alicia interjected._

_Tsuna's frowned deepened. "On your way again? What else do you need to do?"_

"_That's none of your concern." Alicia refused to make eye contact with anyone in the room._

"_Well…" Tsuna hesitated. He felt like something was off with those two for a while now. "Go ahead and give me your report."_

_Hailey shook her head. "Sorry, Tsunayoshi, but we need to give this report in private."_

"_What!" Gokudera started, but Yamamoto held him back._

"_We'll eventually hear about everything anyways, so why not tell everyone now?" Yamamoto asked the twins. But they just shook their heads._

_Tsuna noticed that Hailey's gaze was a bit unfocused. He frowned a little. "Alright. I'll meet you in my office."_

_The two young women nodded and turned to leave, but Hailey tripped slightly on a chair. Alicia started whispering something to her and everyone could tell that Hailey was apologizing. Hailey raised her hand to push herself away from the chair, but missed._

_Hibari caught her wrist and prevented her from falling. He looked mad. "You're blind."_

_Eyebrows shot up in surprise, and everyone turned to Hailey to see if it was the truth._

"_Please let go, Hibari-san," Hailey said quietly._

_Now they knew something was wrong for sure. Hailey hadn't called Hibari, Hibari-san since Nami Middle. She and Tsuna were probably the only ones brave enough to call him by his first name. _

_Hibari pulled Hailey toward the door but got blocked by Alicia. "What are you doing Hibari?"_

"_I'm taking her to the omnivore's office."_

_Hailey sighed. "So stubborn. Fine, let's go Alicia."_

"_Sorry everyone," Tsuna said to his friends, "I'll be back as soon as we're done."_

_The group nodded and reassured him that it was alright. _

"_Ah! Wait a minute!" Hailey exclaimed suddenly. She turned back to the others and smiled. "I just wanted to say good-bye and that I'm glad I got to meet all of you."_

_The four left the office, leaving a very confused group behind._

_Alicia closed the door behind them after making sure no one had followed. Meanwhile, Hibari helped Hailey into a chair then went to the back of the room to lean against the wall._

"_So what do have to report? What have you two been up to for so long?" Tsuna asked immediately, leaning against his desk._

_Hailey told Tsuna about what they had found. Apparently the Gesso family that was attacking the Giglio Nero family had merged together to form the Millefiore Family. She told them what they had found out about the leaders and the formations they had discovered. Hailey also told Tsuna about their suspicions of what the Millefiore family was after._

"_Are you sure? The Vongola rings and the Arcobaleno pacifiers?" Tsuna frowned and rubbed his chin in thought. "How can you be sure?"_

"_Don't ask how we know about it. Just know it took a lot of time and effort. Also we have someone we'd like you to meet. He has some important information and a plan we'd like you to consider." _

"_Your health," Hibari interjected, staring intensely at Hailey._

_Hailey laughed lightly. "That's not a question, but you never were one for showing concern. Yes my health. It's fine, just the after effects of part of my mission. Like I said, it took a lot of effort to find that out about that stuff."_

"_So you'll get better?" Tsuna asked._

"_Only time will tell." Hailey smiled a little to herself._

_But Tsuna didn't like that smile. It had the underlining of something sad, a secret that only _she_ knew. And the way she had said good-bye to everyone else earlier felt more like she was saying good-bye for good, rather than a 'see you later'. But before he could question Hailey any further, Alicia stepped forward._

"_Look, like I said we only came to give our report. We can't give any details right now but we'd like you and Hibari to meet with us and one other at the safe house in half a year." Alicia finally looked Tsuna in the eye._

_He was able to read a lot of grief, regret, anger, frustration, and pain. But there was also conviction. His frown deepened. "Why six months? Why not sooner?"_

"_There's still a few more things to take care of…" Hailey trailed off._

_The two left without a word to anyone else._

* * *

><p>"Yay! We're now second years!" Hailey cheered.<p>

"Whoodie-diddly-doo, let's just get this over with already." Alicia shoved her hands into her pockets and trudged on.

Hailey laughed. "You've been in such a bad mood ever since we finished that last mission."

"That's because it was a total flop! That guy was just paranoid." Alicia ground her teeth angrily.

The two walked around the corner to see Reborn talking to the group dressed as some…. Russian guy?

"I am the special class distributor, Vongolavsky." Reborn said while kicking his legs up in down like he was doing a constant jig.

Alicia stared at the hitman with deadpan eyes. Hailey smiled, but there was a 'pretend I don't know them' feeling coming from her.

"We're out," Alicia said and the two left the school grounds, deciding to skip for the day.

* * *

><p>The next day…<p>

"How did we end up in the same class!" Alicia yelled and slammed her hands down on Tsuna's desk, where everyone had gathered.

"Thanks to the class distributor yesterday, we got to choose what class we wanted to be in," Kyoko said, smiling and surrounded by sparkles.

"Yeah! And we put all of our names together!" Yamamoto said smiling.

"Even though you weren't with us, we made sure to put Risa-chan's and Hailey-chan's name on the class list as well," Kyoko continued.

"And after I went through the whole effort of hacking the school's system to make sure I was just in the class next to them," Alicia sobbed silently.

Hailey giggled and Tsuna sweat dropped. They were the only ones who heard.

* * *

><p>Saturday April, 22<p>

Hailey and Alicia walked out of Yamamoto's father's sushi shop. They had just finished eating an early lunch. Outside was Yamamoto, Gokudera, Ryohei, Haru, Tsuna, Reborn, and Moretti the Murdered.

Hailey turned to Alicia. "You owe me 1,000 yen."

"Damn! How did you even remember the exact day?" Alicia demanded as she dug out and handed over the money.

"Risa-san! Hailey-chan!" Tsuna shouted. "What are you two doing here?"

Hailey handed over a spare set of cloths. "I found out Moretti was coming and figured at some point you all were going to end up here. Anyways I wanted to ask you and Reborn something."

"Huh? What is it?" Tsuna asked as he pulled on his cloths.

"Tomorrow and the events with Lambo, please leave us out of it." Hailey's smiled, but her words were extremely serious.

The teenagers sweat dropped a little.

"Well see you guys in a few days!" Hailey said cheerily and started walking away.

"Oh? Where are you two going?" Yamamoto asked.

"We're going on vacation!" Hailey said happily.

"About time too. _And_ we're making David pay," Alicia said with a smug smirk.

"Thanks for your help," Reborn said to Hailey. Tsuna looked at Reborn suspiciously.

Hailey giggled. "No problem! It should arrive in a couple of days!"

The twins waved to the group and left.

* * *

><p>"Yay! Again, again, again! Mafia Land is so much fun! Let's go on everything again! <em>Again<em>!" Hailey cheered and jumped up and down.

Alicia nodded and smiled. "Not only do we get to relax, but because we're a top class family we get to skip the lines."

"Do you think we should go look for Tsuna and his family? They should have arrived here by now," Hailey stood on her tip toes and gazed through the crowd.

"Nah, We'll see them on the ship home."

"Hmm," Hailey hummed and placed a finger on her chin in thought. "I know! Let's go visit Colonello!"

"Sure. We haven't seen him since that meeting in our fifth year here right?"

Hailey nodded. "I wonder how the others are doing. Now that I think about it the only Arcobaleno we have met yet is Skull, Mammon/Viper, and Verde."

"I don't really feel a great need to meet Skull and we'll see Mammon at the ring battles. But if you think about it, Reborn is probably the only one who knows we're the panthers."

Hailey scrunched her face. "Oh yeah. Then we should properly introduce yourselves don't you think?"

The two ambled toward the cliff where Colonello would most likely be via the train tunnel. Hailey hummed along the way and ran forward when they finally reached the other side, just in time to see Tsuna being kicked by both of the mini Spartan tutors.

Alicia whistled. "Nice kick."

"Hm?" Colonello turned toward the twins. "Who are you two? Did you fail the test as well? Kora!"

"Do you see a train? No. We came to visit you, Colonello." Alicia shrugged forward.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile Hailey grabbed a long sturdy branch and took out some wire. She started fiddling with the two.<p>

* * *

><p>"Do I know you two?" Colonello frowned and tried to see if he remembered meeting any twins at some point.<p>

Reborn smirked. "This is why I'm better. These two are the black and white panthers."

Colonello's eyebrows shot up in surprise and in recall of the meeting.

* * *

><p>Hailey had finally finished fiddling with the branch and wire, which was now a newly formed fishing stick complete with a hook. She hummed and walked over to the edge of the cliff and cast the line as far as it could stretch till it landed in the whirlpool, then sat down to wait with her legs dangling on the edge.<p>

* * *

><p>Colonello stroked his chin between his index and thumb. "So you're Perduto de Dimenticato's infamous panthers. Kora! What are you two doing here of all places?"<p>

"We came to Mafia Land for a well-deserved vacation. And since we already went on everything, we decided to come visit you and introduce ourselves properly."

Colonello smirked. "You two have a pretty good reputation. Kora!"

"Not that big, compared to the Arcobaleno." Alicia gave a lopsided smile.

* * *

><p>Hailey's head shot up as the wire gave tug. She stood up and pulled until finally her catch was pulled out of the whirlpool. She reeling in her line and dumped a soggy Tsuna onto the ground next to her.<p>

* * *

><p>Tsuna lay there panting for a while. "I thought I was gonna die."<p>

"You can do it if you put your mind to it," Reborn said.

"But there's not time to rest, kora!"

Tsuna jumped up when he saw three large shadows approaching him quickly. A boulder penetrated the ground where Tsuna had been only moments ago.

"There's more, kora!"

More boulders fell from the sky.

Tsuna dodged and made a run for it, screaming. But Reborn and Colonello had already predicted this course of action and had a pit trap ready. Tsuna held onto the edge and screamed for help, trying not to fall to his imminent doom from the height or snakes at the bottom.

Alicia sighed and pulled Tsuna out of the hole by the collar of his shirt.

"Thank you so much!" Tsuna cried.

Reborn puffed his cheeks in a pout. "You two are no fun."

Alicia tossed Tsuna to the ground. "Here, you can beat the crap out of him _all_ you want."

The twins sat off to the side with some popcorn to watch Reborn and Colonello torment Tsuna. They looked up as the train pulled out of the tunnel again and stopped in front of the group.

Tsuna turned to watch as it pulled to a stop. "Huh?"

"A new trainee has arrived," Colonello said, obviously pleased that he had a new victim.

The door opened to let Yamamoto and Gokudera jumped off.

"Tenth!"

"Tsuna!"

"Gokudera-kun? Yamamoto? Why are you two here?"

"You didn't come back, so we went to the reception office," Yamamoto informed him. "And then-"

"They told us we could get to you through that subway," Gokudera interrupted. "I'm glad we found you!"

Tsuna sighed wearily. "It probably would have been better if you hadn't come."

"You can go ahead and train these guys too, Colonello" Reborn said.

"They seem like they're worth training, kora!"

Tsuna stared in horror and turned to his friends. "You two should escape quickly!"

"Boo~!" Hailey and Alicia jeered. "We want a show!"

"What! Whitey and that woman are here as well?" Gokudera shouted, outraged.

"Tch. I'm a woman too idiot. By the way," Hailey said walking over to the trio, "my sources that the Calcassa family is going to attack the island."

Right then a warning went off and informed everyone on the island to take cover.

"Well, hope you can take care of it!" Alicia said cheerily and the two hopped out of sight.

* * *

><p>A few days later everyone was back at school and the twins went back to ignoring the teacher along with Gokudera.<p>

Yamamoto tapped Hailey on the shoulder after class. "Hey, we're going to teach Tsuna how to swim today. Do you two want to come with?"

The twins glanced at each other quickly and shook their heads. They had another mission today.

"Sorry Yamamoto." Hailey smiled apologetically.

"We've got other plans," Alicia finished.

"Okay. That's fine! See you two later," Yamamoto said as he waved good-bye and walked away.

* * *

><p>The twins walked up to a secluded building out in the middle of a large forest. They were there to visit and do a favor for the boss of the Giglio Nero famiglia, Aria. Even so the members of the family were scrutinizing the two girls like hawks. If they weren't professionals, they would probably be quaking in their boots.<p>

Hailey sighed as they walked into Aria's office. "Jeez! You'd think we were about to go berserk the way they were all watching us. It took everything I had not to stick my tongue at them."

Aria smiled warmly. "Sorry about that. They're a little over protective is all."

"If you were more careful and took better care of yourself then we wouldn't have too," Gamma griped.

"Cheh. Don't take it out on us though," Alicia grumbled.

"So what do you need Aria-san?" Hailey said cheerfully.

"Well since Ali recommended you two, I was hoping you could do me a favor." Aria held out a file. "I need you two to take care of these people and then," She handed another file, "watch over this person, stay by their side, and protect them."

Alicia raised an eyebrow. The first file was a list of mafia members from a family that had recently gone rogue. The second file held nothing but a small note:

_I ask of you to look after my daughter Yuni. Please don't let any of my family know about this. Those people are looking for anyone affiliated with me and there's a rumor that they're going after my daughter. Please take care of her._

"No problem!" Hailey said cheerily and smiled.

"Tch. I don't see why you can't ask one of us to take care of it, instead of these two little girls," Gamma muttered.

"I wouldn't underestimate these two _little_ girls," Aria reprimanded softly. "After all, it's not every day you get to see the faces behind the black and white panthers' masks."

Gamma snapped his head around to look at the two girls in shock. Hailey gave him a wide smile, but Gamma had been in the mafia long enough to see how dangerous that smile really was.

"We'll be going now Aria-san. Don't worry about this person in question. Just give Ali a call when our services are no longer required. She'll be able to contact us. Until then, ciao." Hailey and her sister turned and left.

* * *

><p>"Hi Yuni-san," Hailey said softly, yet losing none of her cheerfulness.<p>

Yuni stared at the two girls wearily. She took a few steps back when Alicia raised her eyebrow at her.

Hailey punched her sister's arm. "Ignore my sister here. She's really nice, she just scowls a lot. Anyways, your mother asked us to look after a while. Is that alright with you?"

"But mother has me living with grandma right now," Yuni said suspiciously.

"Yeah, but something happened and your mom asked us to look after you for just a little bit. It'll be like a vacation," Hailey raised a finger to raise a point, "And then you'll be back with your grandmother in no time!"

"My guess is that it'll be about a three to four days," Alicia said before yawning.

She and Hailey had gone to take out the men Aria had told them about, just to find that they were a bunch of wannabe hitmen. The only reason they were able to kill so many people was because they played dirty and underhanded tricks. Alicia had been furious when she found out and beat the shit out of every single one of them for wasting her time. In the end, the twins had no problem at all in turning them in to their teammates who would take them to the Vindice later.

"So for that amount of time, will it be okay if Alicia and I are your playmates?" Hailey held out her hand.

Yuni smiled slowly then took Hailey's hand and nodded happily.

"Aaaaahh! I can't take it anymore! You're just too _cute_!" Hailey cried out and pulled Yuni into a hug.

Yuni looked a little shocked, but giggled as Hailey nuzzled their cheeks together and hugged the older girl back.

Hailey picked the little girl up. The trio left for the private plane waiting for them at the airport to take them to a safe house the Dimenticato family owned.

But just as Alicia had predicted, Yuni was with them for only three days. Although they weren't supposed to, the twins became very fond of Yuni. And it seemed that Yuni had become extremely attached to them as well.

Yuni had told them about every moment she spent with her mother, and the gifts that she would bring her back sometimes. Then moved on to her grandma, who wasn't blood related to her but whom she still loved very much. In exchanged Hailey told Yuni about their real parents and about Tsuna and his friends. Yuni was pretty sad to see the two girls go, but smiled cheerfully for them nonetheless.

* * *

><p>The twins decided to skip this day since it was review day and they already reviewed all that education crap several times over. The two wondered around town and somehow ended up across the street from the Toyo building.<p>

Hailey narrowed her eyes at the building. Tsuna, Lambo, I-pin, and Kyoko were sitting around a table next to the soda machine. That seen was _too_ familiar to not be suspicious. "Target 34: The Varia comes, Target 35: The Vongola Rings…" Hailey muttered under her breath.

"Huh? What's that?" Alicia glanced at her sister.

"Alicia! Go find Yamamoto's bat immediately! I'll go find Dino!" Hailey said suddenly. Her tone held urgency.

"What? Why?" Alicia asked. She had no clue what was going on.

Her question was answered when several loud explosions went off. Citizens screamed and ran off. The two watched as Basil fell from the building and onto Tsuna. Squalo then yelled at the group. So loud that the twins could hear him loud and clear despite the distance between them. The two looked at each other. They nodded and split into opposite directions.

Alicia hopped over roof tops and jumped through Yamamoto's open bedroom window.

'_This boy really needs to learn how to take safer security measures_,' Alicia thought exasperatedly. She grabbed the special bat Reborn had given the boy, leaning against the door and ran back out. Using the dust cloud Squalo, Alicia placed the bat next to Yamamoto and split once again.

Alicia met up with Hailey who was busy leading Dino to the correct location. When they reached the court yard area they stopped running and let Dino and his men pass them. The two chose to hang back to the side, using the shadow of the ledge from the building to mask most of their presence.

"You haven't changed, Superbi Squalo." Dino stopped near the group, holding out his whip. "Being so serious against children… Aren't you embarrassed?"

"Dino-san!" Tsuna called out, relieved.

Squalo and Dino glared at each other.

"If you insist on continuing your tasteless little game, I'll take you on." Dino extended his whip a little bit to press his point.

Squalo contemplated his situation a bit. He smiled menacingly. "It'd be fun to take you on here and now, Bucking Bronco! But the brass wouldn't like it if I take on the family alliance. So I'll go home quietly…" He turned his head slightly, as if in retreat. "As if I'd do that!" Squalo turned and grabbed Tsuna by his hair, pulling him off the ground.

"Tsuna!" Dino tried to attack with his whip, but Squalo deflected with the explosives on his sword.

Squalo smiled like a shark and started to bring his sword back around to stab Tsuna but froze. Two blades were crossed, like a giant pair of scissors, and pressed against his throat. He stiffened even more as he felt the barrel of a gun bump against the side of his head.

"Drop the boy," Hailey said coldly. She was glaring, her eyes like ice.

Tsuna opened his eyes and shivered. He couldn't see Hailey's face, but Alicia's eyes were as cold as the day she had confronted Chikusa. He was shocked to see both of them carrying weapons with them.

Squalo could sense that the girl in front of him was extremely dangerous. He hadn't even felt their presence, let alone see these two move. They were definitely professional hitmen. But who?

"Drop the kid," Alicia reiterated. "Take the stupid rings and get lost, before we decide to get rid of you _our_ way."

"What family are you from?" Squalo demanded.

Hailey pressed her blades closer, almost breaking the skin of Squalo's neck. "Doesn't matter. This isn't our mess to deal with."

"We won't repeat ourselves again. Next time, we'll just kill you."

Squalo smirked. "Why not just kill me now?"

"Today's not meant to be your death day," Hailey answered smoothly.

"Now take your rings, and get lost." Alicia said slowly, pronouncing each syllable clearly. She narrowed her eyes and tightened her grip on her weapon.

Squalo ground his teeth together in anger, but released Tsuna. Hailey backed away and tossed the box with the Vongola rings to Squalo. Alicia kept her gun trained on the white haired man the entire time, just in case.

Squalo jumped to the top of the building just as the dust cloud cleared.

Dino ran over to the small group and crouched next to Tsuna. "Tsuna! Are you guys alright?"

"S-somehow," Tsuna replied uneasily.

"Soft as always, Bucking Bronco!" Squalo shouted. "For your and those two girls' sake, I'll leave their lives in your hands. But I'll take these with me!" Squalo showed them the box with the Vongola crest.

"Ah!" Dino stared in shock.

Basil held his arm as he also starred in horror at the box. "The Vongola Rings!"

"Vongola Rings?" Tsuna asked softly.

"See ya!" Squalo back flipped out of sight.

"H-Halt!" Basil shouted and tried to pursue the shark like man, but stumbled a little due to his many wounds.

"Don't push yourself," Dino called to the boy.

Reborn stepped forward. "Pursuing him wouldn't be smart."

"Reborn!" Tsuna looked down at the small hitman. "Why are you stepping out now? Why didn't you help me?" He demanded.

"I'm not allowed to attack him," Reborn told his pupil.

"Why not?" Tsuna asked, frustrated.

"Because he's in the Vongola family as well," The hitman explained.

Tsuna stared in horrified shock. "A Vongola almost killed me? What's going on?" Tsuna rubbed his hair in frustration and fear.

Hailey walked over to the CEDEF boy and checked his wounds. "Basil, you should look after your injuries."

"Ah! You're-!" Basil started as he recognized the two girls. "Please! Thou shalt be able to retrieve the rings!"

Hailey shook her head. "It is not our place to interfere." Hailey was about to add something else, but Basil collapsed.

Alicia rubbed the back of her head in irritation. "It hurts my pride to just let him go like that though. Especially with everything we've accomplished."

Hailey laughed lightly. "We should go, besides" Hailey became very serious, "there's something bothering me about this whole situation. Someone was watching us."

Alicia nodded and started walking away.

"If you happen to see the person who sent Basil, please tell him: if I see him, there's a good chance that I may kill him for sending Basil out like that. I don't appreciate kids getting sent on missions like the one he had Basil take on. See you guys later, Reborn, Tsuna." Hailey smiled and waved at Reborn and his students before she too left the area.

* * *

><p>Tsuna and his guardians had been training like crazy ever since Squalo's appearance. Meanwhile Hailey and Alicia were monitoring the situation and looking into whoever was spying on them the other day.<p>

They didn't like it, something felt off…

Hailey and Alicia were sitting in another apartment, that had been converted into a large computer room, on the top floor when David came in.

"Hey you two. This letter addressed to the both of you came in." He tossed a yellow envelope at Hailey and walked back out.

She ripped the letter open and two rings fell out onto her palm. Hailey's irritation levels shot off the charts. "IEMITSU! THAT IDIOT! I'M GONNA KILL HIM!"

Hailey stormed out of the building with Alicia trailing behind her sniggering. She was going to enjoy watching Hailey beat the crap out of the Vongola's outside advisor.

* * *

><p>Tsuna's father was walking out of the forest after giving some advice to Gokudera, when he was confronted by Hailey.<p>

"Iemitsu-san!" She smiled warmly at him, he could almost see the flowers floating around her. Then she suddenly turned very angry with a black aura of rage and destruction streaming from her. "I should kill you, you idiot!"

Iemitsu sweat dropped and held his hands up. "Uuuhh…Hailey and Alicia….How nice to see you. I hope you're doing well…."

A vein popped on Hailey's temple. She smiled, but her black aura still remained. "Oh, I was doing alright, till I opened a letter and found these rings."

Iemitsu laughed nervously. "So you won't even consider the position?"

Hailey threw both ring halves at the man. She was no longer smiling and thankfully the aura was gone. But now she was all serious business. "There's nothing to consider. This is the Vongola's mess. The Perduto de Dimenticato family won't get involved."

Tsuna's father sighed. "I was afraid of this. But I was hoping you would at least take a few minutes to think about it. After all you did say that the two of you were watching over Tsuna."

"We are acting as extra protectors for Tsuna and his guardians. We are not actually part of the group though," Alicia explained. She had calmed down since Hailey didn't resort to violence. "As we told Reborn. We will assist Tsuna and his guardians when it is needed, but we will _not_ become part of his family."

The two girls left without another word.

* * *

><p><strong>Hailey POV<strong>

I was sitting alone in my room reading a book. Night had fallen and Alicia was probably sound asleep. But something was bothering me…

Those two extra rings. I had looked them up after we gave them back to Iemitsu. They were the ring for the Moon and Star guardian. My initial research results told me that only Vongola Primo ever had both of those guardians, and that they originated from the Dimenticato family. After that only the third, fifth, sixth, and eighth Vongola bosses had a guardian in that position, but never at the same time.

Vongola Terzo and Sesto had a moon guardian. Quinto and Ottavo had a star guardian. But only the two star guardians were really authentic because they came from the Dimenticato family. The moon guardians really only had the title and nothing else. The two moon guardians also died an early death, and were only in possession of the ring for about a year.

I also found that there was a crucial reason as to why the moon and star guardian were found together and originated from the Dimenticato family. I'm going to have to be extra careful about the ring battles. Alicia and _must_ not get involved. We cannot alter this world any more than the previous members of the Dimenticato family already has.

I put my book down on my lap and leaned back on the headboard of my bed. I couldn't concentrate, so I closed my eyes and let my imagination flow.

Whenever I'm feeling bothered or upset I imagine a place where I can relax. It's a large field surrounded by tall trees of all sorts. In the middle of the field is a large tree, I don't know what kind, but it's perfect for climbing. I could either relax at the roots or climb up the branches and let my inner mind wonder around there. On one of the branches I have a swing hanging down, and whenever I feel like it I'll have flowers bloom in the field. There's a constant gentle breeze and the sound of a distant stream. Sometimes I'll even have the place covered in snow!

_Kufufufu, a very meticulous and detailed mind you have now isn't it._

I felt a vein pop.

No way. He should _not_ be here. This is my realm, my place to relax.

I turned around and saw Mukuro leaning against a nearby tree surrounding my field.

I glared daggers at him.

No, I mean literally. I thought up a bunch of daggers and made them fly at him.

_Kufufufu, that's not very polite. Do you treat all your guests that way?_

'Get out!'

_I don't see why I should._

Okay, this guy was really irritating. Was messing with my head and my resolve back at Kokuyo Land not enough for him?

I pinched the bridge of my nose and sighed. 'Man! I guess you got in here because of that scratch you gave me with your trident, so what do you want?'

I conjured up an electric chair for him to sit on while I hopped up onto one of the lower branches of my tree.

Mukuro chuckled and turned the chair into a couch.

'Cheh. Ruin all my fun.'

_Kufufufufu_. _I must say, your mind is very intriguing._

'Haaah? In what way?'

_Your mind is very organized, almost to the point of obsession. Every leaf is in its place. Each tree surrounding this field has grown to a perfect state. The wind doesn't blow anything out of its place. However the outskirts of your forest reveal that you weren't always like this. You used to let life run its course naturally, loving nature with all its oddities and not for the perfection that others sought. The edges of your mind are also crumbling to bits. So I suppose part of your need for perfection is due to an illness you've kept secret from everyone, including your sister._

Everything has to be perfect now huh? But that's true. If I can't conduct my trail perfectly then Alicia will also suffer my mistake. This story has to flow perfectly and consistently with the one we read and watched in our previous life.

'So what? Trying to do my business perfectly isn't a bad thing.' I don't need Mukuro to know about my condition. My health is my own concern.

Mukuro just chuckled. _I also noticed that you've isolated yourself from everyone else._

'What? No I haven't. This is just my place to relax and spend some time alone. It's not like I don't _ever_ want to interact with anyone.'

Mukuro pointed a finger to the sky.

I looked up. My eyes widened in shock.

In the sky were three islands. I could see my parents on one, my sister on another, and Tsuna and his friends on the third. The bridge to my parents' island was completely destroyed and crumbling. The path to my sister was crumbling away at the sides, but still crossable except there was a giant wall blocking the way. The bridge to Tsuna and his friends look a little weary, but like my sister it had a wall blocking my way through.

Is this how I felt?

Was I isolating myself and destroying my bond with my sister?

I looked away. It was too much, and I don't want to accept it.

A curtain pulled across the sky, hiding the islands from sight.

_Oya? How childish, you're hiding from the things you don't want to accept._ Mukuro smirked.

'Shut up! Why are you even here? So that you can taunt me?'

_I'm here to ask you to pick up Nagi from the hospital and take her to Japan to meet Ken and Chikusa._

'It's better to ask for favors _before_ you irritate the person you're asking the favor from'

_Kufufufu, but where's the fun in that? Besides, I already know that if it's for Decimo then you'll be sure to take care of it._

'Hmph! I'm sure there are others you can manipulate to do the task for you.'

_Oya? Are you sure you want to treat Sawada Tsunayoshi's mist guardian as such?_

'So you already figured you were going to be asked? And you've decided to accept?'

_With my ability, I was able to discover that amount of information with my abilities._

'Smug little brat,' I mumbled quietly.

'So I guess you plan on teasing them a little by saying you won't join the mafia huh?'

_Kufufufu, of course. But I already figured this will be the best way to get me close enough to possess Tsunayoshi's body._

'Perverted pineapple,' I muttered under my breath.

To my pleasure I saw a vein pop on Mukuro's head, although he continued to smile creepily. _I'm _not_ a perverted pineapple_.

I smiled like a Cheshire cat. 'If you say so…'

I sighed and became more serious. 'You're going to owe me for this.'

_We'll see._ Mukuro stood up and started to walk to the edge of the forest. He paused and turned his head slightly. _Arrivederci ragazza imprigionata._

I pulled out of my field and back into my room. My muscles felt a little stiff from not moving. I glanced at the clock and noticed that I had been talking to Mukuro for a couple of hours.

Cheh. How irritating, now I'm going to be tired tomorrow.

* * *

><p><strong>Everyone POV<strong>

"Hi! We're here to pick up Nagi," Hailey said to the reception nurse.

The nurse raised her eyebrow. She probably thought the two girls before her were they to prank her or something. "Nagi had not been cleared to go home by the doctors yet, and we'll need her parent or guardian to be the ones to be here to sign the release slips when they are notified that it's alright for Nagi to leave."

"Oh my," Hailey smiled dangerously, "you don't seem to understand. Nagi's father has already signed the waiver giving us permission to take Nagi with us."

Alicia held up the forms, Hailey had convinced Nagi's father to sign a short while ago. It wasn't all that difficult since Nagi's mother didn't like her, and her father was worried about his position because of the need to look after his daughter. Hailey had pressed this point, and was able to get his signature quite easily after that.

The nurse read over the form and called out a doctor.

Hailey smiled a little more pleasantly and bowed. "Hello Nakamura-san. My name is Watanabe Haru and this is my sister Suzume. We've been asked to take Nagi with us."

"Ah…you see…" Nakamura stalled. "Well we would like some more time to monitor her. Nagi's recovery was astounding, so we were hoping to examine her a bit more to see if we would be able to stimulate this reaction again in other patients."

"I apologize for the inconvenience to your…research, but we really must take Nagi home now." Hailey's smile became more dangerous once again. Nakamura was visibly sweating and looking away in discomfort.

"Very well, come with me." The doctor led the two girls down a few halls. "Nagi is in here."

"Thank you." Hailey bowed once again. The doctor just nodded and walked away from the two girls as quickly as possible. Hailey knocked before walking in.

Nagi was already dressed. She was sitting on the edge of the bed as if waiting for someone to come.

Hailey toned her dangerous smile down to zero. "Ah! So Mukuro told you we were coming eh?"

Nagi blushed and nodded shyly. "Mukuro-sama said that a girl with white hair and her temperamental sister would pick me up today."

A vein on Alicia's head popped. "That bastard, I'll kill him for that."

Nagi shrank back a little.

Hailey punched her sister's arm. "Sorry about that Nagi, my sister is a bit of a hot headed idiot. But overall she's really nice."

Nagi nodded. "Ano…I'm going by Chrome now…"

Hailey motioned for them to leave. "Ara? Chrome? Did Mukuro help you choose that name while you waited for us?"

Chrome nodded. "Mukuro-sama said I should choose a new name. And I came up with Chrome Dokuro."

Hailey eyes softened. "That's a pretty name. Now let's get you to your new home!"

* * *

><p>"What are you doing in our territory, byon?" Ken shouted the moment Hailey stepped through the door. Chikusa walked up behind Ken.<p>

"We're here on official business," Alicia answered.

"Mukuro asked a favor of me, and this is part of it." Hailey gestured to someone behind her. "This is Chrome Dokuro."

Chrome walked forward, hiding behind her trident a little. "Good evening, Ken, Chikusa."

"Cheh. Who is this? Are you trying to make fun of us? Get out!" Ken yelled advancing toward Chrome a little.

A shadow appeared next to Chrome and started to take form, until finally Mukuro was faintly seen.

"I see." Mukuro looked at his hand. "This is all I can muster for the time being."

Ken pulled back a little in shock. "Mukuro-san!"

"Mukuro-sama" Chikusa walked forward next to Ken.

"Don't forget! You owe me one," Hailey whispered. Mukuro turned his head slightly and smirked at the girl before she left with her sister.

* * *

><p>Hailey was going through the mail before she left for school when she opened a particularly thick envelope. Two half rings fell into her hand.<p>

. . .

"HE'S DEAD THIS TIME! HEAR ME? DEAD!"

Sitting at the table eating breakfast, Iemitsu sneezed then shivered. For some reason he felt like he should watch his back extra carefully for now on…

* * *

><p><strong>Oh dear, Iemitsu should be careful. Hailey is definitely the worst twin to make your enemy.<strong>

**I'll get the next chapter as soon as I can. School is really coming after me with a vengeance. ^^" heh heh...**

****Hoped you liked it! Please, please, please, please, please review! ****Reviews make authors happy! ****


	13. Chapter XIII

**Hi, sorry it took so long. Who knew teachers were mean enough to make a major project due a week earlier? Also I was also kinda depressed cause only two people bothered to review my last chapter. TT^TT**

**So please review this one! It really does inspire me to type this up faster!**

**A special thank you to AccessBlade and kuroitsubasa24 for being the only two who reviewed my last chapter! Also thank you AccessBlade for adding my story to your community, it made me very happy! ^^**

**I hope you guys like this chapter!**

* * *

><p>Chapter XIII<p>

_Tsuna and his guardians were sitting around a table. Even Hibari had come, though he leaned against the wall near the door instead of sitting with the rest. They needed to discuss the problem of the newly formed Millefiore Famiglia. The Gesso Family had been bad enough, but this newly formed family had more military power as well as the Mare Rings._

_There was a soft knock and a single figure walked through the door. The group looked around to see a female with her black hair tied in a high ponytail and wearing a black cat mask._

"_Risa-nee!" Lambo shouted happily and stood up._

_Tsuna smiled softly. "I'm glad your back. Though I guess you're here to remind me of our meeting, correct?" Tsuna glanced back at the door, "where's Hailey, I thought she'd be with you."_

_Alicia didn't move. "We need to leave for that meeting right away. I don't have time to waste here."_

_Gokudera growled._

"_Where is Hailey?" Hibari asked sternly._

_Alicia turned her head a little so that she was partially facing the cloud guardian. "That holds no concern to you."_

_Yamamoto laughed a little nervously. "Did she get into an accident? Where is she staying?"_

_Alicia sighed. "So persistent... Alright, I'll tell you... Hailey... is dead."_

_The occupants of the room felt like their heart had stopped. They just stared at the masked person in front of them._

_Gokudera was the first to recover. He walked over and grabbed Alicia by her collar. "And you're telling us now? Aren't you her sister? Why didn't you inform us sooner so that we could have done something?" Gokudera shook Alicia roughly and knocked her mask off. _

_He froze._

_Alicia's face was full of anguish and regret. Tears were pouring from her eyes, and it looked like she had been crying for days on end. It was nothing like her emotionless voice._

_She slapped his hand away and picked up her mask, hiding behind a small piece of plaster with no emotion._

"_I'll be waiting at the designated area." Alicia turned to leave._

_Hibari stepped in front of the door, blocking the black panther's way out. "What do you mean she's dead? She said she would get better."_

"_No. She said that time would tell. Now move out of my way." Alicia tried to step around the raven haired man, but was blocked once again._

"_Hailey isn't the type who would die so easily, so how is it that she ended up dead?" At least if another person had been the reason, then he could go bite the person responsible to death. _Hibari refused to believe that Hailey had died from something as weak as an illness. __

"_This isn't any of your concern. Just forget about her already," Alicia said irritably._

"_Alicia, Hailey and you are a part of our family," Tsuna said gently, "There's no way we could just forget her. At the very least, we would like to hold a funeral for her."_

"_It's too late for that."_

"_What do you mean, too late?" Hibari growled._

"_You're all thinking it already, right?" Alicia burst, "It's my fault! Hailey got sick and I couldn't do anything to save her! She had to suffer a long and slow death rather than leaving right away because I needed her help! She's always helping me at her expense! It's my fault. It's my…" _

"_If you two had told us, we could have come up with a cure to save her," Gokudera said roughly, trying to hide his emotions behind his rough attitude._

"_There was no cure…and Hailey-…Hailey didn't want anyone to suffer along with her…so she spent the last of her days at the Dimenticato's headquarters and then had them cremate her. They tossed her ashes wherever she had told them to."_

"_You can't know that we wouldn't be able to cure her for sure!" Gokudera insisted. "Vongola has the best medical equipment and knowledge!"_

"_You're wrong," Alicia whispered, "Hailey's time was up. Even so she stayed just for a little longer to help me so that when my time is up we will have helped you to the fullest of our capabilities."_

"_Alicia!" Tsuna said sharply, "are you sick as well?"_

_Alicia gazed at the man through the hole in her mask. "I do not suffer from any illness."_

"_But Risa-nee," Lambo cut in, "you said when _your_ time was up."_

_Alicia turned back around and started to walk out once again. "You should remember this," she called out as she left, "I'm a Dimenticato, and all Dimenticato live in this world solely for their mission. All else is obsolete." _

* * *

><p>"Hmmm," Hailey hummed as she scanned her surroundings. "His house should be a ten minute walk in that direction." Hailey pointed down the path.<p>

Alicia yawned for the umpteenth time since they had started out. She waved her sister's directions away. "Just lead the way and I'll follow."

"Hai, hai!" Hailey smiled and started walking again.

The two arrived at a village a little earlier than Hailey had predicted. They gazed around at the old village.

"I feel like we've been thrown back in time," Alicia muttered.

Hailey slapped the back of her sister's head and shushed her. They started forward once again and started asking around for a certain young boy with light green/turquoise colored hair and similar colored eyes. As they headed toward the direction a kindly old man pointed them to, they spotted a small gang of teenagers grouping around what appeared to be a young child.

"Hailey," Alicia said slowly. She knew exactly what thought had just sprung into her sisters head. "Don't interfere. We won't always be here to protect that kid and we have a job to do."

"But I'm sure if we scare them enough they'll leave him alone," Hailey reasoned.

"No," Alicia said firmly. "We're going to walk away and look for that brat."

Hailey looked longingly between her sister and the kid. "Please?"

Alicia tried to look away, but was unable to avoid her sister's puppy eyes. She groaned. "Man, why do we always get stuck doing this stuff?" Hailey smiled and hugged her. "Alright, alright. Let's get this over with already."

* * *

><p>"Come on you weird brat! Why don't you cry for help already?" One of the teenagers sneered.<p>

Another one spat at the boy's feet. "Man, this kid pisses me off!"

"Why don't you just leave town already!" The third snarled.

The boy just stood there, unaffected by their actions.

"We'll teach you!" The forth teenager, and seemingly the leader, raised a hand as if to punch the kid. Suddenly he flew forward and fell hard onto the ground. The boys wheeled around to see two girls, one with their foot still raised and her hands in her pockets.

"It looks like you stepped on something rather disgusting Alicia," the girl with white hair giggled.

The black haired girl, who was no doubt the other girl's twin, wiped her foot on the ground. "No kidding. You owe me a new pair of boots now Hailey." The white haired girl laughed lightly again.

"Hey!" Thug teenager number one snarled.

"How dare you do that to boss!" Thug teenager number two shouted as well.

Thug teenager number three ran over and helped up his leader.

The thug boss teenager growled at the two girls. "You bitch! How dare you even _think_ of hitting me?" he demanded.

Alicia shook her head a little bit. "Ara, ara. I seem to be hearing a lot of buzzing noises lately."

Hailey completely ignored them and looked over at the young child and blinked. "Ara? Look who we have here Alicia!"

"Why you! Don't ignore us!" The thug leader yelled and charged for the two girls.

Alicia sighed.

"Apparently he didn't get the message," Hailey sang and smiling dangerously.

"That was your one and only chance to get away," Alicia said calmly before punched the teenage boy in the stomach, followed immediately with a swift uppercut. She didn't even bother to give the other boys a chance to react, instead choosing to take them all down as quickly as possible.

The boy who had been silently watching the actions of the group of teenagers finally spoke up. "Oh? The ugly gorillas were taken down by a ugly hag."

A vein popped on Alicia's temple. "What was that, you ungrateful little brat?"

Hailey shushed her sister and turned back to the child and bent down a little so that she was about eye level with him. "Hi there, my name is Hailey Dimenticato and this is my sister Alicia!"

The child gazed wearily at the two girls. "What do you and the ugly hag want with me?"

"Well, if I'm correct then your name is Flan, correct?" Hailey continued kindly.

The boy's eyes widened a fraction. "Yes is it."

"Well Flan, you see, Alicia and I know that you aren't exactly like all the other kids here. And we, well I, want to help you learn how to use your abilities, the basics at the very least. I can also introduce you to a long term teacher if you want."

"How do I know you're telling me the truth?" Flan asked emotionlessly.

Hailey smiled.

* * *

><p>"How much longer till we get there?" Flan complained emotionlessly.<p>

"So the little brat has always been this annoying," Alicia muttered, "we should have just let those punks beat him up a little."

Hailey laughed. "Don't worry, we're almost there," she called behind her to Flan. She stopped in front of a cliff and knelt down in front of Flan. "Hop on. I'll carry you up."

Flan didn't move. "You're just going to leave me up there."

Hailey shook her head. "While I help you with your illusions, Alicia will take care of your physical training. Then the place at the top will be all yours. No normal person will be able to bother you there."

Flan stared at the girl for a while before finally climbing onto her back. The moment Hailey was sure she had a tight hold on the boy, she jumped and started hopped up the cliff in a few strides. She looked around and decided to carry the boy all the way to the river, to save some of Alicia's patience, before setting Flan back down on the ground.

"What do you think? Not a bad hideaway, huh?" Hailey set her hands on her hips and gazed around at the tranquil terrain.

"I don't know, this place looks like it'll attract a lot of imps and faeries."

Alicia sniggered. She had read that part in the manga several times over after it had come out.

Hailey eyed the boy in amusement. "Then you'll just have to train yourself to get ready for that, ne? I can also teach you some ways to irritate people even more than you usually do."

There was a spark of interest in the boy's eyes, though it didn't quite reach the rest of his face. "Really? Do tell."

Hailey chuckled at Flan's sudden spike of interest in her teachings. "Then, for now on I'll be your sensei!"

"But I can keep calling the other girl whatever I want right?"

"I dunno." Hailey shrugged. "Depends if she has anything to bargain with."

"Hey! That's not fair!" Alicia argued. "I'm not nearly as conniving and manipulative as you are!"

"That's you loss!" Hailey and Flan stuck out their tongues and made a peace sign at the frustrated twin.

* * *

><p>Hailey was walking alone around Namimori. They had just come back from their mission of teaching Flan and Alicia had gotten hurt when she tripped on the top step of the airplane to go home. Alicia had made Flan physically strong enough to climb up the cliff and Hailey had taught him the basics of illusions. They actually had a lot of fun, and Flan's grandmother seemed to appreciate their company. The twins had only stayed a few days so they promised to visit as often as possible before they left.<p>

This now left Hailey feeling more bored than usual. She entertained the thought of teasing Gokudera for a while, but decided against it since they needed to train for the Varia.

It was starting to get pretty late so Hailey decided she should head back. Alicia was okay with kids, but when she was in pain she had a very low tolerance level. Even less than usual…

Just as she started to take a path that would lead her home Kyoko and Haru ran up to her. Kyoko looked worried. "Hailey-chan have you seen Lambo-kun, Fuuta-kun, or I-pin chan?"

Hailey shook her head.

Haru looked even more distressed. "We just asked Tsuna-san and he said he would find them, but…"

"If Tsuna said he would look for them then I'm sure it will be alright," Hailey said kindly. "You two should go home. I have nothing to do so I'll go find Tsuna and give you a call if we find them, okay?"

The two girls nodded and left. Hailey waited till they were out of sight before she took off as quick as she could for where the Varia and Tsuna would first meet each other.

* * *

><p>"Normally, one set of the half Vongola rings are held by the Boss and the External Advisor and during the announcement of the successor, a completed Ring is given to the chosen seven. However, this time has become an exception. The sets of seven chosen by the two of them do not match, and each of them handed them out to whomever they chose. Meaning, the seven led by Xanxus-sama, chosen by the Ninth. And the seven lead by Tsunayoshi, led by Iemitsu," The Cervello said, switching off between the two.<p>

They continued with no interruption. "We have a rare occurrence this time though. The bearers of the night sky set, has been found for both sides. For Xanxas-sama there is Carmina Moretti for the star guardian and Danielle Moretti for the moon. For Tsunayoshi there is Hailey Dimenticato for the star and Alicia Dimenticato for the moon," the Cervello continued.

The sound of a gunshot echoed through the tense air. Everyone looked down at the Cervello's feet to see a bit of smoke coming out of a small hole. They looked around and zeroed in on a figure with white hair sitting on the wall nearby the group. She jumped off the wall and aimed at the Cervello.

Tsuna took a few steps back. It was the first time since he had met her, that he had seen Hailey looking mad. No she wasn't just mad she was furious and the gun in her hand wasn't helping.

"I'm sorry, could you repeat that? I'm sure the Cervello are well aware that Alicia and I are of the Dimenticato Famiglia," Hailey said quietly, "so I should think that you would know better than to go and involve us in the Vongola's mess. After all, we are _not_ permanent guardians for Sawada Tsunayoshi. In fact, there should have been no moon and star guardians to begin with. That was mistake of a past that we _won't_ be inheriting. You see, my sister and I have a lot more to lose than everyone here and I won't let you, _or_ the Vongola, mess up everything that I've worked for."

The two Cervello weren't fazed at all. "You must arrive at your allotted time or cause a loss for Tsunayoshi's side."

If was possible, Hailey looked even angrier than before. Hailey's grip tightened even more on her gun, so much that it broke into pieces. She clicked her tongue in irritation and tossed it aside. Hailey glared full force at the two pink haired girls. "The Cervello know more than anyone the rules that the Dimenticato are bound by and you still try to continue this? Are you seeking for their deaths?"

'_The rules they're bound by? What's she talking about?_' Tsuna wondered in fear. Reborn frowned and tugged his fedora down a little bit.

"There is no rule stating that the Dimenticato must never join another family."

It was taking everything Hailey had to not release any of her powers, even so it was like an unnatural wind was stirring her hair and clothes. "No rule! Don't mess with me! You know very well that we are to never involve ourselves with the Vongola any more than providing a slight precautionary guarding. We are to never join their family, and I will be damned if I let myself be the reason that they all end up in the worst possible situation."

"You and your sister have been chosen as a rightful candidate for the position of the star and moon guardian. You _will_ attend the proceedings for the Ring Conflict when you are summoned."

There was a scarlet glint of light flashed in Hailey's eyes. "Remember this well Cervello. We are the Perduto de Dimenticato Famiglia. We are the lost and forgotten. The consequences of failing to be forgotten will upset the balance of that power you watch over. The dark of night was _never_ meant to mix with the light of day."

Hailey reached into her pocket and pulled out the two ring halves she was carrying. With a swift side motion, she tossed them at Iemitsu, though a little harder than she meant. The rings flew and tore apart the tree next to the three CEDEF members in half.

"Next time I see those rings in my home," the white panther threatened "I'll destroy them." She turned to leave but paused and looked back at the Varia. "Oh, and Levi A. Than…" Hailey smiled a little with her eyes closed. "I would be careful for now on if I were you. You see, I'm in a horrible mood right now. And if you lay so much as a _finger_ on those kids," Hailey's eyes snapped open, "_I'll kill you_." Finished with telling them her warning, Hailey turned and left the two groups.

* * *

><p>The next day, neither of the two girls came to school.<p>

Reborn went to check their apartment while Tsuna went to class, only to find that they had vacated it.

The kids that the twins had been looking after still lived in the same room on the top floor and attended school like usual. But when questioned about the two girls' whereabouts, the children's reply was that Hailey and Alicia went out of the apartment often and would return whenever they finished their business.

"This could certainly prove to be a problem," Reborn muttered.

* * *

><p>"So I guess we won't be attending to them as Alicia and Hailey anymore, huh?" Alicia yawned and readjusted her mask. The two girls were sitting on top of the roof, waiting for the sun guardian match to get on its way.<p>

Hailey watched as Tsuna joined his friends, holding a googly eyed Lambo. "No, since our mission will be more dangerous, for now on we should just go by our alias."

"It'll be tough. I wonder how they're going to handle the whole star and moon guardian thing." Alicia looked down at the Varia members standing beneath them. There were two robed figures standing among the usual Varia guardians. "Carmina and Danielle Moretti huh?"

"They aren't really much. But the fact that they're here at all is messing with the original plot of this story. We need to find a way get rid of those two and the Night Sky set of rings."

"So what is the Night Sky set anyways? You said you researched them right?"

"The Night Sky set is the moon and star ring, since those two belong to the night sky. When they were made in Vongola Primo's time it was so Primo could try and convince a couple of siblings to join his family. Those two were Michael and Sarah Dimenticato, and like us they were twins." Hailey fixed her earpiece so that she could hear the conversations below a little easier. "But even with the creation of the two extra rings, they never accepted the positions. They even told Primo to destroy the rings so that the future wouldn't be altered, but he kept them anyways. The thing with those rings is that no one else has been able to complete the set."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"There's certain requirements to complete before the rings will actually show its power. They have to be siblings, and they have to be from the dimenticato family. They also have to actually have the moon and star flames. But that has only happened a total of twice now, first with Michael and Sarah, and now with us. In addition, they can only wear the rings if they have the night's curse."

"What's the curse of the night?"

"The difference between having the star and moon flames and then bearing the curse of the night is a few of things. One is the curse of the night sky will have more power, but they will also have to deal with their physical being getting damaged every time they use their flames. This curse has only ever been present in the Dimenticato famiglia, especially since we can't exactly die till our mission is over. We know that we are under the curse because one of us will have red eyes."

"So, in this case, that would be you right?"

"Yeah. Whereas Tsuna's eyes turn orange when he uses his flames, mine will turn a bluish white when I use my regular flames and red when I use the curse's flames."

"What's the other requirements?"

"Figure it out yourself." Hailey pulled her mask up a little so that she could stick her tongue out at her sister.

"Ryohei, fight!" Was screamed through the sound system.

Hailey had already held her ear piece a distance away, but the sound practically burst Alicia's eardrums out.

"You stupid idiot don't shout so F-ing loud!" She shouted. Hailey pulled her back just in time so that no one saw them.

* * *

><p>"Did you hear something?" Tsuna asked Gokudera and Yamamoto.<p>

"Nope!"

"I did not hear anything Juudaime."

Tsuna shrugged and turned back to watch the Cervello checking the sun ring halves.

* * *

><p>"You idiot! What if they had found us?" Hailey hissed.<p>

"I couldn't help it. He nearly made my ear bleed!" Alicia whispered back. She rubbed the back of her head where Hailey had hit her. She sighed and looked back down at the boxing match down below. The lights had already been blown out. "You know I think we should alter our plans a little."

"Haah?"

"I think that while we're just working in the shadows we should use our masks. But if we go out in front of them, then we should use our names."

"Why do you say that?"

Alicia turned back towards her sister. "Think about it. Are you just going to stand by and let Lambo get killed?"

Hailey turned away. "Tsuna will save him."

"But that's not to say that Levi will give up right away. Remember Squalo was supposed to make Tsuna drop the rings then go away, but he almost stabbed Tsuna."

Hailey bit her lip. She knew that the possibility was there.

"Also, they need to get Lambo to the hospital right away. And we'll definitely be faster than anything they have."

Hailey closed her eyes and sighed. "Fine, fine."

* * *

><p>Alicia yawned.<p>

They were hiding in the shadows by the door Tsuna and the others would exit through. Because of the weird random pipe thing going through the wall and floor, there was a convenient hiding spot for the two girls to spy from. Both were without their masks this time.

Alicia was very grumpy. Not only was it cold, but it was raining too. It was one of her least favorite combos for bad weather.

"Ah, so tired. Why did they have to choose such a late time at night?" Alicia mumbled. "And how the hell did they know it would rain? The weather report last night said that it would be a partially cloudy night!"

"Only idiots believe what they see on TV," Hailey said quietly. Thankfully the rain was masking their conversation, seeing as Tsuna and the other were standing nearby and Lambo's fight had already started. "If you checked the pilots weather predictions, you would have seen what was really going to happen later. You should learn how to read a METAR already, jeez! David won't let you get a pilot's license till you do."

"I don't feel like reading all that short hand crap." Alicia hugged herself to try to contain a little bit of her heat.

"I don't intend to run," 20 years older Lambo said calmly. "Thunder, set." Reddish lighting came down and struck the 25 year old man.

Tsuna and everyone stared in amazement.

"That looks amazing," Yamamoto said in awe.

"It's extreme," Ryohei agreed.

Lambo bent down a little and got into position to attack. "Take this. Elettrico Cornuta!"

Levi's eyes narrowed slightly. "I know that technique."

"Eh!" Tsuna started in surprise.

"Because it has one fatal weakness," Reborn explained.

Tsuna turned back to the battle. "Weakness?"

"There's no effect unless you're hit by the horns," Mammon explained.

"Its short reach will be its doom," Bel finished.

Lambo charged forward.

Levi pulled out his electric sword/umbrellas. "I'll skewer you!" He sent his weapons flying at his opponent.

Lambo smirked. "That was the old me. After the personal training I received from Hailey-nee and Risa-nee as well as the book they left behind, there's no way I would be the same." The electricity built up and turned into a horn.

"Hm? A book huh?" Alicia muttered. "I bet that was you. There's no way I would take the time to write a training booklet for anyone."

"Heh. I was thinking about writing a training book for Lambo so that his 25 year old self would be ready for this battle. Guess that finalizes it."

Hailey flinched as she watched the 25 year old Lambo change back into five year old Lambo and get sent flying with a powerful hit from Levi. Hailey was shaking with anger. She took a step forward.

Alicia grabbed her sister's arm to prevent her from running out. "Hold it. Not just yet. Wait till Tsuna melts the electric towers."

But Hailey was nearing her limit of watching Lambo getting beaten fast. Just before she charged onto the field, the towers collapsed and blocked Levi from completing his finishing blow.

Everyone looked around to see who the culprit, for knocking down the tower, was. As the steam cleared away, they were able to see a figure kneeling by the Electric Circuit. Gradually hyper dying will mode Tsuna came into view.

"If I were to lose a dear friend right in front of my eyes," Tsuna looked up slowly, "I'd never be able to die in peace!"

Hailey and Alicia pulled back a little. There was a possibility that the events would follow the story line and they wouldn't have to interfere. Tsuna faded out of his hyper dying will mode as he continued. But that was bad judgment on his part.

Levi's frown deepened. "I will not fail the boss!" He pulled up his sword and restarted his attack. But he froze. He had found himself in the same situation as Squalo with two blades pressed to his throat and a Hailey was standing between him and his target. Her bangs were covering her eyes.

"Back away Levi," Hailey said in her softest and most dangerous tone, "or I won't be able to hold myself back from killing you anymore." Hailey looked up and revealed to the Varia and the Cervello her red irises.

A drop of sweat rolled down Levi's face, though it was hard to tell because of the rain. He felt genuine fear looking into this girl's eyes.

"I told you already, if you touched those kids I would kill you. Even so, I'm willing to let you live for now. This is a once in a lifetime offer, so I suggest you take it. Now back away."

Tsuna and the others couldn't see what was going on, but the waves of Hailey's fury was potent. It gave them the shivers to just be near her, even if her anger wasn't directed at them.

Alicia pulled off Lambo's ring half and tossed it at Levi's feet. "Hailey, we should go now. We did what we came here to do. If you stay near Varia any longer, you're going to lose all your reason and wipe them out. And Lambo needs the hospital, so let's go."

"Tch." Hailey closed her eyes in irritation, but pulled away. She carefully picked up Lambo and the two girls disappeared before Xanxas could arrive.

Reborn frowned a little. He had seen Hailey's red eyes through the reflection on Gola Mosca's goggles. What was that exactly?...

* * *

><p>Hailey and Alicia sat by Lambo's bed alone. They were waiting for Tsuna, Nana, and the rest to arrive.<p>

Hailey let out a gust of air in irritation. "Letting Levi make it out of there unscathed leaves a bad taste in my mouth."

"Were you really ready to take the responsibility of killing someone on your hands?"

A vein popped in annoyance and frustration. "No, but I would have liked to punch and kick him a little at least!" Hailey raged.

This was one of the few times where Hailey and Alicia swapped personalities. Alicia shook her head, exasperated. "What good would it have done? Lambo was already badly wounded."

"It would have made me feel better! And it would serve as Lambo's revenge!"

"Storm boy will take care of that later." Alicia sighed. '_Honestly. For all the times she had to become so unreasonable…_'

Tsuna, Yamamoto, Gokudera, and Ryohei ran in. Reborn was riding on Yamamoto's shoulder.

"Lambo!" Tsuna shouted and ran forward. The other three teenagers followed.

"Stupid cow!"

'_Funny how an insult could sound so concerned_,' Alicia thought sarcastically.

"Are you alright?" Yamamoto asked.

"Hang in there!" Ryohei partially shouted.

Alicia's eyebrow twitched. "Why on earth are you saying that now?"

"To give him extreme support!"

"How long were you two watching?" Reborn interjected before Alicia could continue with her snide remark.

"I don't know. Sometime after Levi, but before you guys showed up. Levi is definitely the weakest and stupidest one, because we had no problem sneaking into our hiding spot."

"So then you went to the Sun match as well, correct?" Reborn looked over at Hailey, trying to let her know he wanted her to answer.

But Hailey wasn't looking at anyone, but Lambo. So Alicia answered again. "I suppose. Depends what you mean by that though."

"Why come at all if you aren't a part of this?" Gokudera demanded.

Alicia rolled her eyes. "We already told you guys that we would watch over you. We just won't join your family." Hailey stood up suddenly and walked stiffly, but quickly, out the door. "See ya guys," Alicia said quickly as she too ran out of the room.

* * *

><p>The next night the two girls were sitting in the computer room. Hailey had hacked the Cervello's video and audio system so that they could watch the storm match.<p>

Hailey sighed and leaned back in her chair when Gokudera's match ended. "Geez, that followed the manga and anime almost perfectly."

Alicia chuckled. "It's almost like you really _want_ the story line to change a little bit."

"Not really. It's just that we watched and read all of this so many times, that I wanted something we didn't catch before to happen."

Alicia turned off the monitor just as Dino arrived, stood up, and stretched. "I guess we don't need to watch anymore since it's going according to the story line." The two girls walked out of the tech apartment and back into their own to go to bed.

* * *

><p>Dino turned to Tsuna. "We must have just missed the Varia. Kyoya hasn't come yet, right?"<p>

"Eh, he just came," Tsuna answered.

"Wha! When did he manage that?" Dino said in shock.

"Don't worry," Reborn spoke up, "He didn't do much and went home."

"I-I see." Dino was embarrassed that Hibari beat him and relived that nothing too bad happened as a result. "I didn't think he'd be back so soon."

"Dino-san, where have you been?" Tsuna questioned.

"How to put it… 'on the road training' I suppose." Dino felt exhausted just thinking about his training.

Tsuna blinked, confused. "On-the-road training?"

"He doesn't listen to anyone at all, and he wouldn't admit a loss even if I were to squash him," Dino explained with his left eye closed and scratching his head.

"So Hibari-san's a handful, even for Dino-san!" Tsuna said in slight horror and amazement.

"So I panicked when Hailey told me that the Ring Conflict would take place at Namimori Middle School." Dino looked around at the damaged hallway. "We both thought Kyoya would snap if he saw his school damaged. Hailey suggested to train him for fighting in different situations, and to move the training away from Nami Middle. Thanks to her advice, we went from mountains, to the sea, forests, and rivers. I was able to train him in all sorts of environments."

"T-That seems epic," Tsuna stuttered in awe.

"Hailey told you that?" Reborn asked.

Ryohei started a little bit. "Oh! And I was able to make sure Sawada didn't tell Kyoko about us fighting because Hailey-chan told me to go."

"Now that you mention it," Shamal said, "Alicia was the one who told me that Gokudera's match would be today."

"Not only that, but they helped Lambo yesterday," Tsuna added. "And 20 year older Lambo said that Hailey-chan and Risa-san trained him, and wrote a book for him."

"Hm, so they're still playing a role in this after all," Reborn muttered. He turned back to Dino. "So, how much stronger has Hibari gotten?"

* * *

><p>Yamamoto was sitting by the short set of stairs that led to the dojo, fingering his bamboo sword. He was wondering about his match against Squalo and his Transcending Style. Was Dino right, and the Shigure Souen Style wouldn't be enough to defeat him?<p>

Suddenly Alicia swung down from the roof, startling the troubled boy. She looked around before she stood up. "Good, no one else is here," she muttered. Alicia raised a hand, "Yo."

Yamamoto laughed. "Hey there Risa! What brings you here?"

Alicia lowered her hand to her hip. "Hailey and I felt like it would be a good idea for one of us to wish you good luck for your match today."

"Thanks," Yamamoto smiled and rubbed the back of his head.

"You don't have to lie to me you know. I can tell you're worried."

"Ah," Yamamoto lowered his and looked down. '_So I was that obvious huh?_'

"You're worried about if you sword style is good enough to beat Squalo right?"

Yamamoto laughed a little. "Yeah. Dino said that relying on the Shigure Souen Style alone, can't beat Squalo's Transcending Sword style."

"I know." Alicia studied the boy in front of her. "Well I would have to say that you should trust the one who taught you, especially since your teacher was your father. Knowing him, I'm sure he said that the Shigure Souen style was invincible. So, you should just believe him, ne?"

Yamamoto blinked, and then laughed wholeheartedly. "Your right! I'll believe my dad and use this sword!" Yamamoto stood up and turned to walk back into the dojo, but stopped and blinked again. "Oh? Risa, how did you know my dad taught me? You and Hailey were never around to hear me tell you guys."

But Alicia was already gone.

* * *

><p>"So he ended up needing a good pep talk, huh?" Hailey asked as she turned on the computer and hacked into the Cervello's surveillance system again.<p>

Alicia sighed. "Yeah, though I don't see why you couldn't have talked to him, while I went and talked to Dino."

"I get the feeling that you would have left out some key detail if you had told Dino how to sneak his men in 'just in case'. Besides I also went to see Iemitsu and suggested to him that he went and told Yamamoto's dad that Yamamoto had a sword fight tonight."

"Ah, I see. So that way Yamamoto's dad and Tsuna can also give him a pep talk right."

"Yeah and so that Yamamoto's dad will pass down the Shigure Kintoki."

"I wonder how all of this stuff took place without us?" Alicia asked out loud absentmindedly. Wondering to herself about the same question once again.

"Who knows," Hailey sighed.

* * *

><p>Hailey looked up at the clock. It was 10:30 PM, if they started walking now they could be there in 25 minutes. Perhaps they should go. Something was telling her that it would be a good idea.<p>

"Hailey, let's go to Chrome's match tonight," Alicia said as she walked over. "My gut's telling me we should go."

Hailey chuckled. "Mine too." She stood up and stretched. She grabbed her bag and headed to the door. "Well, let's go."

The two walked in silence and snuck past the Cervello's guards outside the school with ease.

When they reached the door Hailey stopped. "Hey, I'm gonna wait for Chrome, 'kay?"

Alicia gave her a thumbs up and slammed the door to the side. "Yo," Alicia said loudly with a bored expression before she stepped inside.

"Hiiie! Risa-san! What are you two doing here?"

"What's it look like, to watch the mist guardian's match of course." Alicia walked over to the group of males.

"Hey do you know who the mist guardian is?" Tsuna asked.

"Yes."

"Who is it?" Gokudera demanded.

"Not telling you." Alicia pulled down at her eye and stuck out her tongue.

"Why you!" Gokudera started for the girl, but was held back by Yamamoto.

"Where's Hailey?" Reborn asked.

Alicia shrugged. "I suppose she's talking to your missing guardian right now."

Meanwhile Hailey was greeting the Kokuyo gang.

"Hi Chrome!" She smiled kindly.

Chrome smiled back shyly. "Hi Hailey."

"Cheh, the annoying whitey is here," Ken grumbled. Chikusa just stared blankly.

"The little doggie needs to be quiet," Hailey said with a strained smile. She turned her attention back to Chrome. "Come on be more confident! Tonight's your night! And I'm sure that Mukuro is watching over you! So no worries just do your best!"

Chrome nodded.

"Hey! I have an idea! When you go inside and meet your new boss why don't you kiss him on the cheek or something as a greeting!"

She peered at Hailey curiously with her big eye. "You think so?" She didn't notice Ken blushing, though Hailey snapped a secret photo for blackmailing purposes later.

"Yeah, I'm sure he'll love it!" Hailey grinned to herself evilly. This was another good chance for future blackmail photos.

Chrome nodded, completely oblivious to Hailey's true intentions.

Ken and Chikusa started forward with Hailey and Chrome following behind. During the short walk Hailey checked on Chrome's wellbeing and made sure that her new living accommodations was alright. Even though in the story line Chrome lived with Mukuro's two lackeys, Hailey couldn't help but worry a little bit.

She let the three walk in and make their introductions while she leaned against the doorframe and held her camera at the ready.

It wasn't till after Tsuna and Gokudera had their freak out session that Hailey stepped forward and made her presence known, though her greeting was more subdued than Alicia's. "Hi."

"Ah! Hailey-chan!" Tsuna said.

Yamamoto felt Gokudera had calmed down enough and released him so that he could walk over and talk to the twins. "So I guess you two aren't here to watch as guardians, huh?"

"Nope! We are here as spectators," Hailey said cheerfully.

Alicia walked over to stand next to Hailey, as well as to join the conversation. "Nice job against Squalo. I'm glad you listened to your father." Yamamoto laughed and thanked Alicia, though the twins could tell it was strained. "Don't worry too much," Alicia said quietly so that only Yamamoto and Hailey could hear, "that man isn't one to go down so easily."

Yamamoto blinked before bursting into a smile.

Hailey pulled Alicia into a headlock and dragged her away. "You idiot, don't give away the plot!" Hailey muttered through her teeth.

"Sorry, sorry. I just couldn't stand that kicked puppy aura he was giving off." Alicia tugged at Hailey's arm.

Hailey sighed and released her sister. The two of them then walked back over to Tsuna and his friends. The conniving twin crouched down by Reborn and raised a hand to the side of her mouth so that no one else would hear her. "Yo, Reborn! I have something you might be interested in," She whispered.

Reborn smirked. "Oh?" Knowing Hailey, she definitely was in possession of something interesting.

Hailey held up her camera and showed him the series of pictures that she had taken. While Gokudera tried to argue Chrome's entry into their group, Hailey and Reborn haggled on a price for the photos.

"Deal!" She cried out happily and jumped up, pleased with her work. She turned to see Ken and Chikusa about to attack Gokudera for his insults.

"Ken, Chikusa, calm down. It's not something for you to decide," Chrome stepped in. She turned around to face Tsuna. "Boss, am I unfit to be your guardian of the mist?"

"Eh!" Tsuna started in surprise.

"I want to fight as your guardian. But if you say no, I'll obey." Chrome remained calm and emotionless all the way through.

"Eto… That's a little sudden." He scratched his cheek, feeling self-conscious. "I-It's an important matter."

Reborn jumped up onto Yamamoto's shoulder. "But Chrome is the only one who can fight as your guardian of the mist."

"R-Reborn-san, you too?" Gokudera said in horror.

Alicia slapped the back of Gokudera's head in annoyance. "Shut up you stupid squid head. You don't know a thing about Chrome, so don't judge her."

"You stupid gun-freak! You're just as bad as she is!" Gokudera shouted while holding the back of his head.

Alicia and Hailey looked up at the ceiling in thought. '_Gun-freak? I guess that's the only slightly insulting nickname he could come up with._'

Tsuna made his decision and looked up. "All right then, it's up to you."

"Are you sure, tenth?" Gokudera asked, hardly concealing his disproval.

"I can't really put it into words, but I feel like it has to be her," Tsuna explained to his overprotective storm guardian.

Chrome sighed in relief and smiled a little. "Thank you."

"Take that!" Ken said smugly.

Gokudera could only grind his teeth in anger.

"Yay!" Hailey cheered. She ran over and hugged Chrome. "It's a good thing too! Chrome will show you! Good luck!"

Reborn looked down as his pacifier started to glow. "So he's curious too."

Tsuna looked up as he heard the sound of wings flapping. "Colonello!"

"Master!" Ryohei called out. "Shouldn't you be asleep with Kyoko by now?"

"That's why I'm napping, kora." Colonello's nap bubble popped as he became fully awake. "However, I need to figure out whether that mysterious kid is an Arcobaleno or not."

Hailey and Alicia tuned out the rest of the conversations and sat down behind the group. They made sure that when the box was lowered that they would still be inside. Hailey pulled out a pair of specialized goggles she had made for this match. The goggles Hailey built, filtered out the harmful effects of illusions so that even if they watched illusions for days, they would still be alright. At the same time Alicia pulled out a pack of cards and they started a game of poker.

When the floor broke apart due to Chrome's illusion, the two girls were unfazed. The goggles didn't filter out illusions, but their natural ability allowed them to block it out, just like Xanxas and hyper dying will mode Tsuna. By the time Mammon froze the pillars of fire, Hailey and Alicia decided to switch to another card game.

But when Hailey heard Chrome's staff break and the results of the sudden break in connection, she had to squeeze her eyes shut and hold her breath. She knew Chrome would be alright and that Mukuro would save her, but just like Lambo she couldn't help but want to run in and save the girl herself. It felt like an eternity for Mukuro to start come out. When he finally did she felt annoyed at him for scaring Tsuna so badly.

"You idiot! Why do you have to go around scaring and worrying everyone like that? Moron! Stupid! Baka!" Hailey called out to the newly revealed Mukuro.

Mukuro laughed again. "You all seem as lively as ever, little mofiosi."

Hailey felt a vein pop. '_So you're ignoring me, eh?_' She smirked. '_At least he's come out. This match is as good as over_.'

The two girls resumed their card game. As Mammon called on another illusion to twist and split the gym, the two girls grew bored and switched to yet another card game.

Mukuro sent a blast of several fire pillars coming from all angles which Mammon retaliated by freezing the room once again.

At this time Tsuna fell to his knees, clutching his head. "My head!"

"Juudaime!"

"Sawada!"

"It feels like it's splitting open!" Tsuna barely managed to say.

"Are you alright, Tsuna?" Yamamoto asked as he and Gokudera knelt by their friend.

"What is this feeling?" Tsuna cried out. He squeezed his eyes shut and doubled over more.

"Tenth!" Gokudera called out again.

"Don't worry about it," Alicia said without looking up from their game. "One Jack."

"Hmmm. I call BS," Hailey said.

Gokudera looked around to the twins. His jaw dropped in dumbfounded surprise. "You're playing a card game?"

"Tch," Alicia clicked her tongue in irritation and collected the pile of cards before turning toward Gokudera. "We already know the outcome of this battle, so there's no reason for us to watch. In any case you don't have to worry about Tsuna. There's something important that he needs to see. He'll be fine in a moment."

Right at that moment, "something's coming into my head!" Tsuna cried. He fell forward all the way onto his elbows.

Gokudera turned back to Tsuna. "Juudaime…" He said softly.

"Though you gotta feel sorry that he has to experience it in such a painful way," Hailey added as she set down her card. "One three, yay! I win!" Hailey threw her hands above her head and cheered.

"Dad!" Tsuna gasp and sat up. He was breathing hard after viewing Mukuro's experience. "Mukuro," Tsuna said softly with sympathetic eyes.

Hailey leaned back on her hands as she waited for the battle to end, while Alicia just flat out fell asleep on the floor.

Mukuro gave his warning to Xanxas and started walking over to his companions and past enemies.

Chikusa was the first to run out of the box and greet the illusionist. "Mukuro-sama!"

"Amazing! You're so strong!" Ken cheered after running a few steps ahead of Chikusa.

Hailey stood up slowly and brushed herself off, while partially listening to their short exchange. She took her time in walking over to talk to the imprisoned man.

Tsuna turned back to Mukuro after holding Gokudera back. "Either way, t-thanks."

"You've gotten soft, Mukuro." Hailey stopped off to Mukuro's and Tsuna's side and placed a hand on her hip.

"Oya? You think so, white panther?" Mukuro smirked. "I'd say it's that same for you."

Hailey chuckled. "We'll see."

Mukuro's eyes started to droop. "I've gotten a little tired." His started to fall. "This girl…" Mukuro fell to the ground and changed back into Chrome.

Hailey walked back over to her sister to wake her up so that they could go home. "Wake up idiot. I wanna go home and sleep on an actual bed."

Alicia yawned and stretched. "So it's finally over huh?" She mumbled.

Hailey offered her a hand and pulled her sister up. "Yeah, let's get going."

"Each side now has three rings…" The Cervello called out. "So we will continue the conflict. Tomorrow can be the deciding match between guardians. It will be a joint match, the battle between the star and moon guardians."

All the windows in the gym shattered.

* * *

><p><strong><span>Extra – The Day Before Valentine's Day<span>**

"Yay!" Hailey cheered. "Tomorrow's Valentine's Day! It's going to be so much fun! I can't wait to give Tsuna and everyone chocolates!"

"Ugh." Alicia already had bags under her eyes at the thought of having to deal with Hailey the next day.

Hailey was like this every year now, starting 11 years ago, meaning two years before their deaths. Hailey would become all cheery and peppy the day before and make all the preparations to give out candies and whatnot, then become an utter nightmare the next day.

"Okay girls," Hailey clapped her hands together, tilting them to the side slightly, "Let's make homemade chocolates!" Alison cheered while Alicia groaned.

There was a soft knock on the door. Hailey skipped over and opened it to reveal I-pin.

"I-pin chan! Welcome! Come in!" Hailey stepped aside so that the young martial artist could enter. "Would you like to make homemade chocolates with us?" Hailey asked excitedly as she closed the door with a click.

"Yes, help greatly appreciated!" I-pin bowed.

"Oh, it's no problem," Hailey said in Chinese while waving away her thanks.

Hailey, Alison, and I-pin laughed as they got messy from making the homemade chocolates. They decided on truffles, since that was the easiest recipe Hailey could recall. They made it look fancy by sprinkling powdered sugar and cocoa, and wrapping them in different boxes.

The boys watched from the couch with Alicia so that they wouldn't get caught up in all the ruckus the other girls were making. David came in during part of the process and sat down on the couch with the rest of the boys.

"Done!" Hailey called happily. She gave Alison and I-pin high fives. "Well I-pin, here is the box you wanted," Hailey handed over a box of the freshly made chocolates, "and we'll hand the rest of these out tomorrow, ok?"

The two younger girls cheered. I-pin left with another bow and the rest of the day proceeded as usual.

The next morning there was a loud slamming on the door.

"Hailey! You lazy idiot get up!" Alicia yelled.

"Go away, I'm sleeping in!" A muffled voice called out.

"You said you would go into school today!"

"I said that the previous year's as well, only idiots don't learned their lesson after the 16th time."

There was a nearly audible snap. Alicia broke the door down and began the process of forcing Hailey to get ready for school.

That morning David made breakfast for the kids.

"Uncle?" Michael asked, "Why isn't Hailey-nee making breakfast for us today?"

"Well…" David laughed nervously.

There was a burst of yelling and the kids watched as a disheveled Hailey was dragged, kicking and screaming, out of the apartment by a furious, and equally loud, Alicia.

They all sweat dropped.

"How long has she been like that?" Zach asked as he jabbed his thumb at the spot Hailey and Alicia had disappeared through. "Being all happy and peppy the day before Valentine's Day, then acting like a furious, half drowned cat the morning of?"

David chuckled. "I guess for all nine years that I've known her. Though, Alicia told me that Hailey started this process about seven years before I met them." David chuckled again and stood up. "I'll be right back. I've got to go check on some business."

Zach frowned as he thought more about the other half of his and his sister's savior. Something didn't add up right with those two girls.

* * *

><p><strong>Hmmm, so did you guys catch what young Zach figured out? And what did Hailey do to convince Flan? Oh the mystery!<strong>

****Phew! over 9,000 words! I don't know if I can make all my chapters that long! **So how was this chapter? I hope it was to your liking! Please let me know!**

**If you like this story, then maybe you'll like my other one too! Please feel free to check it out! ^w^ **

**Hopefully I'll see you guys soon, bye bee!**


	14. Chapter XIV

**Chapter 14: Chapter XIV**

**This is amazing, I got over 11,000 words! 10,000 without the extra! Woo hoo! There's a good chance that that will **_**never**_** happen again. Though I sad that last time for 9,000 words, so I guess we'll have to wait and see.**

**Thank you everyone who reviewed! Your reviews really inspired me to not only write faster, but to write more!**

* * *

><p>Alicia slapped Hailey across the face. "Calm down you idiot! If you use any more of that power Tsuna and the rest will die as well!"<p>

Hailey eyes, which were flickering between red and a bluish white, faded into its natural shade. The younger girl turned back slowly to her sister. "Sorry," she mumbled, "I guess I almost let my anger go out of control."

Alicia sighed in relief and gave her sister a light chop on the head. "Guess I can't blame you on this one." Alicia whirled around to the Cervello. "You do realize that you're risking the necks of not just our charges, but the lives of the Varia as well. Are you still really going to continue this nonsense?"

"The match for the star and moon guardian will take place tomorrow at 11 o' clock sharp. If you are not there, then it will be considered a forfeit and Xanxus-sama will be declared the winner of the Ring Conflict," The Cervello answered.

"I see…." Alicia sighed again and shrugged her shoulders. "Guess it's time for us to consult the higher ups then. Let's go."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! Whoa." Hailey protested. "You're not going to fight this? Are you kidding me? I was expecting some heads to roll if it was you dealing with this! You do know the consequences about this situation don't you? At least punch them a little!"

"Hailey, calm down. Isn't it your job to think about all of this logically? You're doing the exact opposite by fighting this. And since we aren't sure about how to handle this situation anymore, then we should go and talk to our advisors."

Hailey bit her lip. She knew her sister was right, but she was just desperate to protect everyone. "I just don't want them to get hurt," she mumbled.

Alicia ruffled her sister's hair and glanced back up at the group. "We'll be going now. Don't bother us tomorrow. Ciao."

Hailey and Alicia walked out of the building.

* * *

><p>"Mark! Jared! Get your asses out here!" Alicia yelled at the top of her voice in the spare apartment.<p>

'_Oh sure, I can't beat the crap out of the Cervello when I get mad, but Alicia can scream her head off all she wants_,' Hailey thought with her hands clamped over her ears. "They're not going to come out from you yelling like that. David said we should just call on them normally."

"But I'm mad at them! Besides, what does _normally_ even mean? What, did we need their cell phone number or something."

"You could, but I doubt you would have been any quieter," an exasperated voice said out of thin air. Mark appeared with a small flurry of wind.

"Yo," Hailey raised a hand in recognition. "Where's Jared?"

"Riiiight~ Heeerrreee~!" A voice sang, and with a flash of bright light Jared appeared as well.

"What an idiot," Alicia muttered, "An absolute waste of space."

"I can hear you young lady!" Jared sang/snapped.

Mark and Alicia sighed with weary irritation.

"So how has adjusting to this anime style world worked out? It must have been a little weird to come into a world where your features are slightly pointy and all the random effects that come with it!"

Hailey blinked, then looked down at herself, then looked back up and blinked again. "Hey Alicia! Look at us! We're now anime style!" Hailey twirled around to her sister, her eyes sparkling.

Alicia and Mark face palmed.

"Yay!" Jared jumped for joy liked a little child. "I got to be the one to tell them!"

Alicia dragged her hand down her face. "No you got to be the one to point it out to Hailey. I already knew about us being anime style the moment we arrived."

"Ten years," Mark was muttering in disbelief. "How do you not notice for _ten_ years!"

"Give her a break," Jared said as he placed a hand on marks shoulder, "I'm sure she was just overwhelmed with everything."

Hailey snapped back to attention as she remembered why they had called their advisors there in the first place. "Mark, how are we supposed to deal with this situation?" Hailey asked pleadingly. "If we interfere then they're less likely to forget us and if they don't forget us then they'll die right? But I really like all of them, so I don't want them to die."

"On the other hand," Alicia continued, "if we don't do something then we'll change the story line even more than if we did do something in the first place."

"Hmmm…I've got no idea!" Jared replied happily after appearing to think for a little bit.

"Don't come if you're not going to provide anything!" Alicia and Mark yelled simultaneously.

Mark punched Jared, sending him into the wall. He took a deep breath to calm himself down before turning back to his two charges. "Look, you two are forgetting something important about being here. You aren't just in a story anymore, this is a real world. And just like any world, the future isn't set in stone. The rule is meant as more as a guide and to help make you jobs a little easier. If you stick with the story line as much as possible, then you'll be able to predict what's coming next and be more prepared to help the people you're watching over. But these are _real_ people. They have feelings and emotions, just like you. When this guardian angel thing was started, we had already taken into account that the people left behind won't necessarily forget their angels, and that's fine. We just ask that you try to help them forget you so that they won't be so hurt when you disappear."

"But Mukuro said that when he failed to be forgotten, all the people he interacted with were killed!" Hailey exclaimed.

"Pure coincidence!" Jared cried as he popped up next to Mark. "Mukuro was looking after some people in your previous world, and it just so happened that after he died a big earthquake hit and destroyed the city. And sadly, we can't control mother earth, soooooo…."

"But then what did he go through hell for?" Hailey demanded.

Mark shook his head. "In an attempt to protect his charges, he took the wrong path and gunned down a bunch of mafia mobsters."

"So it's alright to join as Tsuna's guardian?" Alicia tried to reconfirm.

"Weeeelll," Jared stretched as he searched for the right words.

"You two should still try to keep your appearances to a minimum." Mark crossed his arms. "You two will be leaving this world a whole lot sooner than the others and it would be less painful for both sides if you guys aren't too deeply connected."

"So, we can help, but we just have to keep it to a minimum. Stay in the shadows, but make sure they have the support they need." Alicia let out a gust of air and slumped over. "So we're going to do exactly the same stuff as before. Why couldn't you just say that to begin with? It would have saved us from worrying needlessly so much."

Jared rolled his eyes. "Well think about it, what type of heaven would we be if we killed all those little kids you saved?" Alicia stuck her tongue at man.

"We need to speak privately with Hailey for a little bit," Mark suddenly said.

"Hm? Why?" Alicia questioned.

Hailey waved her hands in front of her. "It's nothing. You should go to bed now. I won't be that long."

Alicia shrugged. "Alright then. Night."

"Good-night!" Hailey said cheerfully and waved to her sister. She waited till she heard her sister's bedroom door to click shut in the other apartment before she turned back to her advisors, becoming serious. "It's about my upcoming death day huh?"

* * *

><p>"Juudaime!" Gokudera called out as he saw Tsuna running up from behind them. He and Yamamoto stopped at the corner of the school so that their friend could catch up with them.<p>

"Hey Tsuna! Have you seen Hailey or Risa yet?" Yamamoto asked.

Tsuna shook his head. "No. Reborn and I couldn't find them."

"Do you think they'll come?" Yamamoto wondered aloud.

"Stupid twins," Gokudera grumbled. "Always causing problems for juudaime." He stopped walking and bowed to Tsuna. "I'm so sorry Juudaime! If I had gotten the ring in my match, then you wouldn't have to worry so much about those two stupid girls!"

Tsuna tried to calm down his storm guardian. "It's fine, Gokudera-kun. I'm sure we'll figure out something."

"Only Juudaime could be so kind and forgiving!" Gokudera cried with his puppy dog look. "How could those two be so worthless."

"Hm, and I thought we seemed a little more reliable than that," a voice said off to their side as they entered the school grounds.

The three boys turned to see two masked figures leaning against the wall.

"Ah, you?" Tsuna and Gokudera exclaimed loudly as they pointed at the two. (Tsuna at the white masked person and Gokudera at the black)

"Oh? Hi there!" Yamamoto smiled and waved.

"What a bunch of idiots," the person in the black masked grumbled.

Before Gokudera could argue back, the Cervello jumped down. "All the contestants are here. Please proceed onto your given arena."

"Hold it! Hailey-chan and Risa-san aren't here!" Tsuna panicked.

Reborn kicked Tsuna in the back of the head, though not hard enough to knock him down, and sat cross legged amid his fluffy hair. "Dame-Tsuna, they're right in front of you."

Tsuna looked around, but the only other people besides them were the two masked people.

The person wearing the white cat mask pulled it so that it was held against the side of their head, revealing Hailey. "Hey!" She stuck out her tongue and raised her hand in a peace sign.

"Hailey-chan!" Tsuna shouted. "Then that's…?"

Alicia also pulled her mask to the side. "Yo."

"So you were that masked person from last time?" Tsuna asked. "Why is your hair black?"

Hailey laughed. "Oh this? I always wear a black wig for my missions. Otherwise everyone would recognize me."

"You should be happy Dame-Tsuna," Reborn spoke up. "You were able to get the renowned black and white panthers as your personal guardians."

"The-! What-!" Gokudera spluttered. "The-the panther's! Really?"

Hailey laughed again. "Well, we have a job to do. Ciao." Hailey ran forward and climbed up the side of the school, using the window ledges to jump off from.

Now that Tsuna and the others looked around they could see that the ends of the school, which jutted out like an E with no middle bar, were connected with a large piece of glass. Hailey stood on the top portion, while Alicia stood below it.

"The field for this joint battle will take place on and above the courtyard. The moon guardians are allowed to help the star guardian on their field, but the star guardians are not permitted to touch the ground below them till their battle has ended. For the star who watches and knows all; who leads the way when the rest are lost and anticipates attacks on the family. The star battle will take place on this glass sheet. There different sizes of holes have been cut out and will fall if any weight is added. The pieces will then fall onto the moon guardians' field. The glass is strong enough to hold you up for now, but any strenuous attacks and it will shatter."

Hailey laughed. "Looks like I've got my work cut out for me!"

"The moon guardian who shines bright and illuminates the darkness, or hides their family from the enemy in her shadow, and controls the tides of war; who shares the shadows of the night with their sibling: the star, we have prepared a similar battle field. This seemingly empty field is filled with pit traps located randomly all over. The pit traps are all coated so it's impossible to climb out, that is if you have the chance to even attempt to climb as there are spikes waiting at the bottom. The match will take place under the moonlight, with no external light source."

"And of course it would be a full moon out tonight," Alicia muttered sarcastically.

"What's with these crazy fields?" Tsuna shrieked.

But Alicia just yawned. "Can we get this over with already? I want to go to bed."

"You stupid gun freak! Take this more seriously!" Gokudera shouted.

"Tch," the hooded girl named Carmina sneered, "such arrogance. From the sounds of it, you think you've already won this battle."

"Carmina," her partner Danielle called up softly. "Cool your head. Just take care of your opponent."

"Now, the Star and Moon match, battle start!"

Carmina threw off her cloak, revealing a mane of red hair and violet eyes. She charged forward, but Hailey just cartwheeled away laughing. She then proceeded to hop around the field and every spot she landed, a glass plate fell through.

"Why you! How dare you ignore me in a battle!" Carmina yelled. She pulled out a pair of gloved with long finger like claws and took a swipe at her opponent.

But once again Hailey dodged, this time with a couple of back flips, opening up more holes in their field.

"Hailey! I would appreciate less glass falling on me!" Alicia yelled as she easily side-stepped an attack as well as some shattering glass.

Danielle had also done away with her cloak and was now attacking Alicia with the same gloves as Carmina, but Alicia was dodging effortlessly and making no indication that she would be going on the attack anytime soon. Danielle had black hair cut in a bob, she also had violet eyes.

"All ready now!" Hailey called out.

"You're finally going to fight me seriously now, eh?" Carmina smirked.

"Eto…" Hailey put a finger to her chin as if in thought. "No, I don't feel like fighting you right now."

"What!" Carmina and Gokudera yelled, both of them outraged.

"Yeah, so see ya!" Hailey waved and jumped backwards through a hole and fell towards the ground.

* * *

><p>"<em>So it's agreed?" Alicia asked through her mask.<em>

_Tsuna clenched his fist, still in turmoil about what their plan included. "Yes."_

"_Okay then." Alicia stood up and headed toward the door. She paused before going through. "Shoichi, please be careful during the first part of the plan. I don't want Tsuna to really end up dead."_

"_No problem," Irie reassured the girl, "I'll take care of everything on my end."_

_Alicia nodded. "Oh and Tsuna," she turned around to face her semi boss again, "You should probably write a note for Hailey's and my younger counterparts. But I don't really know where you could leave it where Reborn won't find it."_

"_I'll leave it with Hibari," Tsuna replied. He looked over at his silent cloud guardian for confirmation._

_Hibari just grunted and closed his eyes but Tsuna and Alicia could tell that, that was a yes._

"_Then I just have one last thing to take care of," Alicia said quietly as she left the room._

* * *

><p>Tsuna and his friends watched in horror as Hailey fell. But the girl in question smiled and suddenly stopped mid-fall. To everyone it looked like she was standing on air.<p>

Hailey laughed. "You all thought I gave up!" She managed through her giggles. "You should see the looks on your faces, it was priceless!"

"Hailey, stop playing around," Alicia reprimanded as she dodged another blow.

Hailey puffed up her cheeks in a pout. "But this is no fun!" She whined. "Why can't you do it?"

"Because I beat you 30 times in rock-paper-scissors and that was the game we decided to use to decide how we would conduct this match," Alicia reminded her sister.

Tsuna stared at the two girls dumbfounded. Were they serious? They left an important decision like that, up to a game of _rock-paper-scissors_?

"Who loses 30 times at a simple game like that?" Gokudera asked in the same flabbergasted state, though for a different reason.

Hailey sighed. "Fine, Fine." Hailey waved her hand around as if conducting music. Then swung to the side and appeared to pull at the same time.

Alicia finally went on the offensive and kicked her opponent, who landed right underneath Hailey. Suddenly Alicia's opponent flew up into the air.

"Going up~!" Hailey sang.

"Danielle!" Carmina shouted.

"Bel's not the only one who can play with wires!" Hailey smiled triumphantly. "I'm glad I added them to my list of secondary weapons!"

"Oh thank god!" Alicia fell back onto the ground. She crossed her arms under her head and closed her eyes, yawning. "I can finally take a nap."

"What are you thinking you stupid gun freak!" Gokudera shouted. "Take her ring already and help whitey!"

"No way. Hailey can take care of herself." Alicia yawned again and turned onto her side, away from the crowd.

Hailey swung herself back up onto her field. "I'm back now! But I still don't really feel like fighting you."

The red headed girl ground her teeth in anger. "What, I'm not good enough for the all-powerful white panther?" She demanded.

"Hmmm, not at all! I just don't feel like fighting." Hailey shrugged.

Carmina glanced back at her partner, who was still struggling with the wires, several feet away. She edged slowly toward the hole Danielle was under.

"You can try cutting her down, but I wouldn't recommend it. I have a whole system of wires down there. Cut the wrong one and you'll slice her head off," Hailey warned.

Carmina ground her teeth and frustration. She looked back and forth between Hailey and Danielle, trying to figure out if her opponent spoke the truth.

"How about this, the star guardian is supposed to see and know all, right? So I'm sure you've thoroughly researched about me and my sister," Hailey held up her finger, "Now if you can tell me everything that you found, and if at least one thing you say is true, then I'll fight you seriously."

Carmina smirked. "How about we add something on then?"

"What did you have in mind?"

"If I get more than one piece of information correct, then I can hit you for every one that I get right." Carmina's smirk grew into a predatory smile.

"Alright then," Hailey nodded.

"What is she thinking?" Tsuna shouted in disbelief.

"Shi shi shi! Your friend is pretty cocky." Bel laughed at what he thought was Hailey's predicament.

Reborn smirked. "The black and white panthers have a 98 percent success rate. Hailey would never blatantly give her opponent such an advantage if she wasn't sure about the deal she was making."

Carmina straightened and stared at Hailey full on. "Hailey and Alicia Yoshida, your birthdays just passed so you two are now 15. Both have slightly above average marks academically and physically. Both of you joined the Perduto de Dimenticato famiglia at the age of seven and started working as two of their hitman at age eight. You were assigned as Sawada Tsunayoshi's and his six guardians' guardians last year. You two were recruited by the Dimenticato Famiglia because Hailey had the ability to see into the future. But before you two joined Hailey was taking tap dancing classes and Alicia was in ballet. Both of you have also taken tango classes in the past three months." Carmina smiled triumphantly as she finished, thinking she was about to get the chance to rip Hailey to shreds.

But Hailey burst out laughing. "Did-Did you hear that Alicia?" She choked out through her laughing fits. "Ballet! She said ballet! That's rich!" Hailey started rolling around on the ground because she was laughing so hard.

"Hailey," Alicia growled, "What the hell did you put in our profile?"

The girls' supporting group below all sweat dropped.

Hailey banged her fists on the ground. "Tap dancing! Ha ha! She said tap dancing! And tango! _Tango_! That's just too good!" Hailey rolled back onto her back and held her sides. "Stop, stop! I can't take it! It's too much! My sides hurt from laughing." Hailey was crying from laughing so hard now. "Ballet! Ha ha! Alicia in ballet! Now that's a good one!"

A blush crept across Carmina's face. "What are you laughing about?" She snapped. "Out of all the information out there about you, that file was the most encrypted and protected!"

"Do you honestly think that just because it was the most protected that that was the right information?" Alicia called up to her sister's opponent. "Come on now, you should be able to do better than that."

"Well then you tell me what you found out about me and my sister," Carmina refuted.

Hailey took several calming breaths before standing up and facing Carmina once more. "Well first off you and Danielle down there aren't sisters, let alone twins. You two were always similar in looks, and many people ask you two if you were twins or sisters as you were growing up. Your real name is Carmina Rossi and Danielle Fuller. Both of you were rather average in school, never noticed and nearly always picked near the end, not last but not in the first half either. You two were really close friends in America, but when your parents were killed in a car crash you were left alone because Danielle moved with her parents back to Italy. Six months later Danielle asked you move over to Italy to live with her. Danielle's parents were a part of the Camorra mafia family, which was disbanded a few years ago because the boss, Ricardo Camorra, was said to be assassinated by a member of the Dimenticato famiglia, and because of infighting they were never able to find a new boss. Danielle's parents were killed during this time as well."

Carmina ground her teeth as she realized just how outclassed she was in finding information about the twins.

Hailey was unrelenting. "There's also a vicious rumor going around that the Dimenticato family annihilated all the members of the Camorra Famiglia. In an effort to help Danielle down there get revenge, you trained and worked your way up to the upper ranks of the Varia. You two were among 37 candidates for the position of star and moon guardians, but you were able to successfully claim those positions because you told them that not only were you two sisters, but you were from the Dimenticato family."

"But we _are_ sisters! And our grandmother was from the Dimenticato family! Her name was Michelle Dimenticato!" Carmina argued. "We also deal with the curse of the night! All of this is why we are viable candidates for the position of the moon and star guardians!"

Hailey smiled slightly and took a breath to reply, but Alicia answered for her. "You came up with a pretty good story, but I'll tell you why it's impossible for it to be true. You see it's absolutely impossible for you to have any relation to the Dimenticato Famiglia in that way. Michelle Dimenticato used an orphan for a mission, calling the child her little sister, but the child went back to its orphanage long before she could remember anything."

Carmina bit her lip. She had pieced together the story that she and Danielle were sisters with Michelle as their grandmother because of the lack of information and the rumor that Michelle had given her child to an orphanage.

"Also," Hailey continued, "You two most definitely don't have the curse of the night."

"How would you know!" Carmina interrupted.

"Hold on, hold on, I was just getting to the reason. Sheesh!" Hailey waved the girl down. "The first thing that tells me you don't have the curse is because neither of you have red eyes. Whoever bears the core of the Night Curse will have eyes that turn red whenever they access the curse's power. Also there's a good reason why all the people who have ever had the curse has to be from the Dimenticato family, though that's a secret I won't be divulging anytime soon. There's actually another reason why you can't ever be the star guardian. You see, you don't have the proper connection to that ring. So, the moment the completed ring is slipped onto your finger, you'll die."

"Why would you and your sister put your lives at risk like that?" Carmina asked in horror. "And how do you even know if _you_ won't die when you put that ring on?"

Hailey closed her eyes. She turned toward the sky and opened her eyes again. "The sole purpose we were brought into the Perduto de Dimenticato Famiglia was for our mission. Our training, knowledge, _everything_! It was all for our main mission. And the reason I know that those rings will work for us is another secret for another time." Hailey lowered her head slowly to look back at Carmina. "Now what I don't understand about you is that you're going for revenge and you've developed your information network pretty well, so why didn't you find out that it was the Luciano family who took Danielle's parents' lives?"

"What!" Carmina whispered. She couldn't react right away. She didn't want to accept that information, for there was no way that an enemy would tell her the truth, so she went back to her previous argument. "But all the other information I found about you two was _obviously_ fake!" Carmina snarled. "I went through it all! There were even more ridiculous things written in there than what I finally settled on! One even said that you were 24, nearly 25, years old and you clearly are nowhere near that old!"

Hailey sighed. "Let me clear up some facts for you. You see… we don't have a last name. In fact we don't exist."

Everyone below gazed up in different ranges of shock and disbelief.

"We officially became a part of the Dimenticato famiglia at the age of five and we only really started working for them at age ten. We have never joined any outside activities in this world. We live exclusively for our mission, just like all the other members of our famiglia. And I most definitely don't have the ability to see into the future, I'm just very knowledgeable and have a great sense of foresight. All that information you found was created by me. I made it so that anyone looking for info on the two of us would be supplied with something they found reasonable."

"You can't _not_ exist! There's a record somewhere!" Carmina shouted.

Hailey smiled sadly and shook her head. "Not for us. There's nothing for you to trace us by. No DNA samples, nor birth record, no dental records, no fingerprints, not even a death certificate."

"That's impossible! There's always a piece of information somewhere," Carmina hissed.

Hailey shrugged. "Perhaps for the black and white panthers, because of all our business dealings, but not for Hailey and Alicia. Those are just two names we kept with us for the day we took on our main mission. Well," Hailey sighed, "It doesn't matter whether you believe me or not. Since you got one bit of information correct I'll fight you."

Carmina started a bit. "What did I get right?"

"Alicia and I did start watching over Tsuna and his friends a year ago." Hailey looked down at her sister. "Hey Alicia! Can you kill the lights? I'm going to fight at full power."

"You sure you're up for it? I don't want you going berserk if you lose your temper." Alicia asked as she stood up and gazed up at her sister. Hailey nodded. "Alright then."

Alicia took a deep breath then looked up at the sky, gazing at the moon. She reached a hand up slowly and squeezed her hand into a fist.

All the sudden it was like the moon had disappeared and everyone was standing in the pitch darkness of night.

* * *

><p>"<em>Boss!" Gokudera shouted as he ran into Tsuna's office.<em>

_Tsuna snapped his head up from his work when he heard the urgency in his right-hand man's voice. "What's wrong Gokudera?"_

"_Alicia was heading toward one of our hideouts entrances when she was ambushed. She currently fighting off the members of the Millefiore right now, but she seems injured and is having a difficult time-" Gokudera didn't get a chance to finish as his boss rushed out of his office to aid his moon guardian._

_They exited out of the rain guardian's entrance and headed toward the last place Alicia was spotted. They took down the members of the Millefiore as they found them, but the situation was getting worse and worse. The trail left behind from Alicia's battle was getting brutal._

_Tsuna and Gokudera broke out into a clearing just in time to see Alicia get shot._

_Tsuna's blood ran cold. He ran forward and caught the young woman as she was falling and lowered her gently to the ground and holding her close to his body. He was vaguely aware that Gokudera was getting rid of the last few members who had escaped Alicia._

"_No…no!" Tsuna whispered. "Alicia. Alicia! Oh no, we have to get this taken care of right away."_

"_Stop. Don't bother." Alicia managed through her labored breathing. "It's too late anyways."_

"_Don't say that!" Tsuna said worriedly, "We can still save you, just hold on!"_

"_Just shut up," Alicia said firmly. She turned her head away as she coughed up blood. She raised a small suitcase that she had been protecting. "Here. Take this."_

_Tsuna took the small metal briefcase from the girl and opened it up. He stared at the contents in shock. "You-… You found Reborn's…" Alicia nodded. "But how? We all thought the Millefiore had gotten their hands on it."_

"_Hailey had found out about their locations and told me everything I needed so that I could go fetch them." Alicia smiled a little at the thought of her sister's last deed to help her finish their trial successfully. "Hide those by one of the entrances to the hideout and make sure Giannini keeps a constant look out after you leave, ok."_

_Tsuna shook his head. "Save your breath, we're going to get you some help."_

_Alicia smiled warmly at the man. "You sure grew up fast. Don't worry yourself about it too much. My time was up, so I'm going to have to go."_

_Tsuna's eyes widened a bit as he remembered what Alicia had said when she first came back without Hailey. "You knew you were going to die here?"_

"_Not quite. I knew the day and how I would die, just not the location or exact time." Alicia's breathing quickened. "It was a lot of fun, being with all of you."_

"_No… no… stop. Please don't…" Tears started to escape Decimo's eyes._

"_Geez. When did you become such a fuddy-dud?" Alicia tapped Tsuna lightly on the nose. "Smile more. Like you used to."_

_The corners of Tsuna's mouth twitch, but her couldn't bring himself to smile fully. Not with the girl in his arms in that state._

"_Work hard for a bright future okay?...You better…you better come back after your past self wins!" Alicia smiled one more time. "Good bye Tsuna." With that Alicia closed her eyes and her breathing gradually slowed till it stopped._

"_Alicia? Alicia!" Tsuna couldn't, no wouldn't, believe that she was…was…_

_No it was impossible! Hailey and Alicia were impervious to anything! They had made it through the most impossible of circumstances!_

_So why, WHY! Was she going cold?_

_Why did she leave before he could tell her anything?_

_Why didn't she stay long enough for him to say…_

* * *

><p>An ear splitting scream shattered the night.<p>

The light returned once again, like nothing had happened.

Everyone looked back around to see what had taken place during the moment of darkness. Alicia was panting a little, but appeared fine. Hailey was standing in the exact same spot as before, but her eyes were crimson and seemed to be glowing slightly. Her hands and wrists were burned and smoking. Carmina was on the floor staring at Hailey in fear, shaking violently and trying to back away. Parts of her clothing and small areas on her skin was burned.

Tsuna gasped at the sight. Hailey seemed so cold, and her eyes were like that of a bloodthirsty monster.

"I fought with you seriously, just like you wanted." Hailey took a deep breath and held out her hand to the Cervello. A completed star ring glinted in the moonlight. "I believe this is my victory."

The Cervello looked at each other. "The match will not fully end till both moon and star rings have been completed."

"I see," Hailey said quietly. She turned back to Carmina. "You didn't sustain any fatal injuries, so you should just relax now." She took a step toward her opponent.

"No!" Carmina shouted, "Stay away you freak!"

Hailey paused and smiled sadly. "A freak huh? I guess that's true."

Carmina kept backing away, but she wasn't paying attention to her surroundings anymore. Without thinking she backed all the way through a hole. She screamed again as she started to fall.

Hailey snapped back to attention and dove head first through the hole after Carmina. She brought out her wires and tied them around the falling red head and swung to the web of wires she had created earlier. But the extra weight took its toll and the taught wires sliced away at Hailey's already injured hands, creating extra wounds that Carmina had been unsuccessful at making before. Hailey winced as her hands ripped and bled, but continued to lower Carmina slowly to the ground.

"Gun freak! Stop standing around and do your part already!" Gokudera shouted.

"Ah! You're right." Alicia had been so busy watching her sister that she had forgotten about her own fight. She walked over to Danielle who was still tangled in Hailey's wires. Danielle glared at Alicia.

Hailey created a pulley system with the wires and lowered herself to her sister, though not completely onto the ground so that she wouldn't be disqualified.

Alicia pulled the chain with her half of the ring off and hung it around the started Danielle's neck. "There you go. You get the other half."

"Wha-what?" Danielle stuttered. "You're just giving it to me? Why?"

Alicia rolled her eyes. "Because I don't want it, duh!"

"But with this ring, you can secure Sawada Tsunayoshi's victory!" Danielle argued, trying to understand the two girls' decision.

"Yeah, but that's not how it's supposed to work," Hailey said cheerfully as she hopped onto the ground. "We've already reviewed all the options and decided this was the best course to take!"

The Cervello hopped down in front of the four girls. "The Star and Moon match has ended. Hailey from Tsunayoshi's team and Danielle from Xanxus's team are declared the victors."

Tsuna and company started to jog towards the twins. Tsuna was relieved that nothing too bad had happened to them.

"Good! Then I don't need this anymore." Hailey flipped the star ring with her thumb toward one of the Cervello, who caught it with surprise.

"I don't really see why you decided to fight her at full strength," Alicia was complaining to Hailey as the boys walked up. "Look at your hands! You're not going to be able to do anything with them for weeks!"

Hailey laughed. "I told her that if she told us something correctly then I'd fight her seriously."

"But you lied to her. You said that the information she got right was when we started watching over Tsuna, but that wasn't true at all." Alicia frowned.

Hailey scratched her cheek. "Well, one piece of information that she didn't believe, was actually correct. Since she told me that that was something she found, I decided to count it."

"Jeez you're so reckless!" Alicia flicked her sister's forehead lightly. "You shouldn't use that ability so easily. I thought you actually had a reason!"

"Good job Hailey!" Yamamoto said with a smile, drawing their attention to the rest of the group.

"Why didn't you take your opponent's ring half?" Gokudera demanded angrily. "We could have won!"

"I'm sure you already heard my explanation," Alicia replied wearily.

Tsuna smiled at his friends. "I'm glad you two are safe though."

Alicia waved his words away. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Sappy friendship and companion moment. Okay now moving on."

Hailey started to laugh, but halted abruptly. Her eyes widened a little and her hand crept up to clutch her chest.

Alicia looked around. "Hailey? What's wrong?"

Hailey burst out in a violent coughing fit. She fell to her knees as she started to cough up blood.

"Hailey!" The teenagers yelled in concern.

But Hailey was deaf to them. She kept coughing, then just as suddenly as it started she stopped and fell over onto her side.

"Hailey…Hailey!" Alicia shook her sister's shoulder. She wasn't breathing "Hailey, what's wrong? Hailey!" She checked her twin's pulse. Her blood ran cold when she couldn't feel a beat.

"What's wrong with her?" Tsuna asked worriedly.

But Alicia ignored him. Her mind was whirling. What should she do? "David…" She said softly. She raised her head and looked around, yelling the man's name. "David! David! David help! Hailey's-Hailey's-! What should I do? David!" Alicia had started to cry in desperation.

Swiftly, a man appeared out of the shadows and next to the two girls. He too checked Hailey's pulse then picked her up. "I need to take care of her right away."

"I'll come too!" Alicia said quickly.

"No, head back to the apartment." David disappeared before Alicia could argue. Time was of the essence.

* * *

><p>Hailey woke up in a safe house somewhere in Namimori. She turned her head slowly and saw a bright blue sky outside her window.<p>

"Finally awake huh?" David snapped his book shut and turned his chair so that he was facing Hailey's bed.

Hailey turned her head slowly to the direction on the man's voice. Her whole body felt stiff and she was aching all over. It made her feel extra tired, like she hadn't slept in weeks. "Where's Alicia?"

"She's back at the apartment."

Hailey stared at the man a bit. Her mind felt like it was running through a vat of cement. "I see."

"You had a close call there. The after effects of the second stage of the curse were even worse than I originally predicted. And from what I saw, you didn't use it very much."

Hailey shrugged slightly. "I already calculated as much. If I use a small amount like that then I only lose about two years, instead of five."

She remembered the first time David had talked to her about her abilities.

_Flashback_

"_Hailey, we need to talk to you about your flames," Zach said seriously._

_Hailey smiled softly. "That dangerous, huh?"_

"_So you're already aware." It wasn't a question. David could tell that Hailey had already figured out the consequences of using her flames._

"_If you only use your regular star flames, then the deterioration won't happen as quickly," Zach explained anyway. "However if you use the curse's black flames, then the damage to your body will be tenfold."_

_Hailey chuckled sadly. "So in exchange for being a total Mary-Sue, I just shorten my lifespan in this world. Fair trade I guess."_

_Zach rolled his eyes. "You don't have to act like one, you know."_

"_If I'm going to be all powerful, then I might as well act like that sort of thing right? Besides, that'll be better than me crying all the time. I'm probably more liable to break down crying if I don't have that kind of front, and it's pretty close to my original personality anyways."_

_David smiled sadly and ruffled the little girl's hair. "If you manage your abilities properly, then you can control your lifespan in this world."_

"_If you only use your white flames, then you should be able to last till your mid-twenties," Zach continued, "Conversely, with only using your black flames twice will shorten your prospective lifespan in half."_

"_Till I'm 15 huh? That sounds about right," Hailey nodded to herself._

_David studied the six year old girl. "So that's the age you decided on with your advisors, correct?"_

"_Yeah, but please don't tell Alicia about this," Hailey smiled sadly, "She doesn't remember the second meeting where we decided on our death day with them. And she probably doesn't know about the curse."_

_Zach grimaced. "She sure is getting a lot of power without even knowing the consequences. You sure you don't want to tell her? It may cause you problems in the future."_

_Hailey shook her head. "Knowing Alicia, she'll get over protective and then we won't be able to do our mission properly."_

"_For a little girl to be so prepared to face a second death," David shook his head, "That is just sad."_

"_I don't know whether you're foolish or brave for taking this all on your own," Zach muttered._

_Hailey laughed. "Well, definitely foolish, but even more than that I think would be selfish."_

_The two men gazed at the girl questioningly._

"_Because we didn't live very long we never got to develop individual identities. And that was actually part of the problem, as well as the reason why Alicia died when I did. This way we create out individual beings without having to do everything together, and Alicia gets another chance at life. I was selfish and asked for all the extra power, as well as making the choice to leave her alone to live longer in this world."_

_Zach glanced over at David. "If that's selfish, then you must be a sadistic bastard."_

_David ignored him. "We'll have to be careful about how we train you on how to use your flames for now on."_

_Hailey nodded and the three continued with her training._

_End flashback._

David shook his head. "If this is what you're like after losing four years of your life, then I'm not looking forward to seeing you lose the other six."

Hailey shrugged again. "I don't think you'll have to. No matter," Hailey held her hand up in front of her face and opened and closed it a few times, "I'll be back to normal by nightfall, so I'll still be able to continue my duties and watch Hibari's match tonight."

"I figured as much, so I told Alicia she could meet you at the school. Make sure you're careful. You may be able to walk around like you're alright, but if it comes down to fighting you won't be able to use your flames for four to six days."

"I know, but thanks for helping me. I know you came with us to Japan to keep an eye on me." Hailey smiled sincerely. "Oh! And could you call Alicia and tell her that she needs to make sure Tsuna gets back in time after Hibari's match? She probably needs to go to his training spot herself and tell Reborn what we think Xanxus will do."

"Sure thing." David ruffled her bangs a little bit and stood up. "I'll go get you something to eat while I'm at it."

* * *

><p>"Hi everyone," Hailey said tentatively as she walked through the school gate and into the courtyard.<p>

"Yo! Hailey," Yamamoto said with a smile. "I'm glad you're feeling better."

"Feeling better, she was coughing up blood! How are you even standing?" Gokudera demanded incredulously.

"Because I'm so amazing and heal super-fast!" Hailey gave the group and enthusiastic thumbs up. The only remnants of her match was the bandages covering her hands and forearms.

Gokudera was stunned, thinking that Hailey was a new level of oblivious stupidity, while Yamamoto just laughed.

"Oh," Yamamoto turned toward the entrance, "Today's hero is here."

Hailey smiled and waved. "Hi Hibari!" She said cheerfully and without fear. "Thanks for watching my match yesterday!"

"Hn." Hibari only gave the girl a brief glance before turning his attention to the other boys. "What are you doing here?"

"What was that?" Gokudera growled, infuriated.

"Now, now." Yamamoto placed a hand on Gokudera's shoulder to hold him back. "We're here to…"

"Cheer you on!" Ryohei finished.

Hibari hummed a little as he understood. He faced away from the group and then looked back. "You're an eyesore. If you don't leave, I'll bite you to death."

"What!" Gokudera said, even more infuriated than before.

Ryohei started to shake in anger as well. "What's with the attitude?" He demanded loudly. "I'm extremely mad!"

Yamamoto placed a hand on Ryohei as well. "Now, now. Calm down. We just happened to be passing by, so don't mind us, Hibari. Okay?"

There was a loud thud as Gola Mosca landed, drawing Hibari's attention away from the younger group.

"I see," Hibari said with a predatory smile. "I just need to bite that to death." Hibari pulled out his tonfas, ready to start his attack.

Just like all the other fights, Hailey tuned out the Cervello's explanation of the field. Instead, she waited for Chrome to arrive, and ran over to greet the mist girl excitedly when she finally spotted her.

After a quick chat she walked off to the side and sat down on the slope, away from everyone else. "Good luck, Hibari," Hailey whispered to the wind.

* * *

><p>Alicia whistled. "He's doing much better than before," she muttered next to Reborn. She had watched Tsuna practically self implode several times, but now he looked like he had gotten the hang of his new technique. "Very nice job." Alicia kind of wished she could tell Tsuna the last step to make his technique work, and the fact that it wasn't the correct Zero Point Breakthrough, but she knew he would learn about it in his fight with Xanxus.<p>

Reborn smirked at the compliment. "Of course. I'm the world's greatest hitman." The infant looked up at the girl. "So what did you come here for? I expected you to be crying all over you sister at Hibari's match by now."

A vein popped on Alicia's temple, but she didn't let her anger and embarrassment get the better of her. "Hailey and I think you guys should start heading over to Hibari's match right now."

"Why's that?"

Alicia looked back at Tsuna and Basil training so that she wouldn't have to look Reborn in the eyes. "Well I know Xanxus is planning something with that Gola Mosca and it would be a good idea for Tsuna to be there in case his friends need protection. Especially since Hailey won't be able to help."

Reborn noted how Alicia deliberately looked away and frowned at her words. She knew more than what she was letting on, which means that it was even more urgent for Tsuna to return to his friends at once.

There was a burst of light. When it had faded away, everyone was staring at Tsuna.

"Oh!" Reborn looked up at the boy.

Basil stared in wonder.

Even Tsuna was staring at his hands in shock.

Alicia smirked. "Finally." He was almost there.

"You did it Tsuna," Reborn congratulated. "This is the Dying Will Zero Point Breakthrough."

'_Almost,_' Alicia thought to herself. '_It's almost the Zero Point Breakthrough… Revised_'

"You did it!" Basil cheered as he ran over. "Amazingly done, Sawada-dono! You've complete the technique that only Vongola the First could perform."

Alicia's phone started to vibrate, so she tuned out the rest of their conversation. Alicia opened her phone and read the message quickly. She hissed slightly.

Reborn looked up, the unasked question floating between them.

Alicia turned away from Tsuna's training. "We should leave…_now_!" She broke into a run.

"All right. Let's go, Tsuna!" Reborn called out.

"Yeah," Tsuna turned determinedly toward the school and the place Alicia had set of running. "Let's go, to Nami-middle."

* * *

><p>Hailey jumped to her feet as she watched Hibari try to fight Xanxus. She could tell that Gola Mosca was going to go off any second now, since Xanxus had already almost used his flames of rage on Hibari. She ran back over to the rest of the group. Even though she really shouldn't, Hailey was going to evacuate everyone.<p>

"Everyone! We need to leave now!" Hailey exclaimed worriedly.

"What for?" Gokudera asked.

Before Hailey could answer, a chill went up her spine. She wheeled around and yelled with all her might, "Hibari! Look out!"

An energy beam blasted out and got Hibari's side. The three boys called out for Hibari in concern.

"Shit! Everybody run!" Hailey shouted and dodged out of the way as missiles flew down.

"Damn it!" Gokudera growled as he stood up. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," Yamamoto replied. "Are you alright, Sasagawa's brother, Hailey?"

Ryohei coughed. "What in the world is going on?"

"I don't have a clue," Gokudera answered unhelpfully. He turned at a noise on the cloud arena and saw Gola Mosca flying past. "T-that's…"

Xanxus explained with no remorse. He was thoroughly enjoying the destruction.

Hailey could only grind her teeth in anger and frustration. It wasn't her place to take the machine down and save the ninth, and that was driving her crazy.

Chikusa and Ken knocked Chrome away from the mine, but now they had the Gatling gun and Mosca on either side of them.

"No!" Hailey ran forward, pulling out her staff. She whirled it around, blocking all the bullets, but there was nothing she could do against the approaching machine behind her. "This is bad…Tsuna!" She flinched as she heard the blast.

But the blow never came. Tsuna was blocking the blast from the particle-energy cannon.

Hailey fell to her knees panting when the Gatling gun ran out of bullets. "Thank heavens…I thought I was going to be in a world of pain for a second there."

"Hailey!" Alicia cried out as she broke away from Basil and Reborn. She knelt by her sister and quickly looked her over to make sure she was alright.

But Hailey ignored her. She was watching Xanxus who was still smiling after Tsuna had knocked Mosca out of the sky. "Shit. Shit! Why can't we do anything?"

Alicia looked back at the fight as well, though she was restraining her emotions a lot better than Hailey. "They're getting so caught up with the fact that Tsuna's stronger, that they're about to cause a whole lot more damage."

The Gola Mosca charged at Tsuna again, but was stopped with one hand. Tsuna slowly raised his other hand for a finishing blow to the machine.

Hailey and Alicia couldn't hold it anymore. "Stop, Tsuna! NO!" Tsuna sliced through the middle of Gola Mosca.

Gola Mosca fell to its knees and the ninth started to fall out.

Hailey and Alicia ran forward and caught the old man, lowering him gently to the ground. Tsuna and the rest could only stare in shock. On Tsuna's part it was enough to knock him out of hyper dying will mode. He fell to his knees in front of the ninth, questioning the reason the old man was in the machine.

Hailey and Alicia quickly did away with the restraints and Reborn came over with a first aid kit.

"Oi! Get a hold of yourself!" Reborn placed a hand on the ninth's cheek. He turned to gaze at the destroyed machine. "I've seen Mosca's structure once before. It seems like the ninth was being used as Gola Mosca's power supply."

"Huh?" Tsuna looked away from the ninth and back up at the machine. "Power supply? W-Why?"

Hailey and Alicia could only grind their teeth in anger. Tears of frustration ran down Hailey's face.

"This is no time to be asking why," Xanxus said with fake concern. "You attacked the ninth."

Tsuna's eyes contacted in shock. "I did?"

"This isn't good. This wound can't be dealt with using first aid."

"That's…" Tsuna trailed off. His voice was shaking.

"Who mercilessly punched the old man?" Xanxus demanded. He was going to use this as a chance to claim the position as boss, as well as break the other candidate.

Tsuna stared at his hands in horror as he realized that he had attacked Mosca with full force, and in turn hurt the ninth because of it.

"Who scorched Mosca in two, along with the old man?" Xanxus continued, unrelenting.

"T-That's…I…the ninth…I…"

"No," the ninth called out, catching everyone's attention. "It was my fault."

Alicia pulled Hailey back a little bit so that Tsuna and the ninth could talk a little more privately. They already knew what he was going to say anyways.

"Wait! Please wait! Ninth!" Tsuna cried, holding onto Nono's hand. "Ninth…" Tsuna whispered.

"Alicia!" Hailey whispered, ignoring Xanxus's threats. "Can you pump some sun flames into him?"

Alicia looked at her then nodded. She knelt by the ninth, and while everyone's attention was focused on Xanxus, she used a small sun flame to help keep the ninth from dying.

"Do as you wish." A shadow was cast over Reborn's eyes. "I've already snapped."

The Cervello gasped and shrank back a little.

Reborn looked up. "But I will keep my promise to the ninth and won't raise a hand. Not in my student's fight."

The Cervello were visibly relieved.

"However, even if I say that, I don't know what my student, who doesn't like fighting, will do."

Tsuna stood to his feet, a shadow covering his eyes. "Xanxus, I'll be taking that ring back. I won't…" He turned, with determination in his eyes, to face the feather adorned man. "I won't let you succeed the ninth."

"Well said, Tsuna." Reborn complimented.

"I'll carve your name into Vongola's history books. As the foolish runt who dared to defy Xanxus all by his little self," Xanxus said with an arrogant smirk.

"He's not alone!" Gokudera called out and stepped forward with dynamite in hand, "The boss's will…" Tsuna's other main five guardians got ready for an attack.

"Is our will!" Yamamoto finished.

Hibari held up his tonfa. "My will is my own," he said with a blank face.

Hailey and Alicia tuned out the conversations again. Alicia was focusing on keeping the ninth alive and Hailey was watching intently, although she made sure to keep half of her attention on the others in case something different happened.

A burst of light let the two girls know that Xanxus and the Cervello had left. Alicia pulled away so that no one would see her using a dying will flame.

Hailey placed a hand on Nono's should and closed her eyes. "Foolish old man. I told you to be careful," she whispered.

Reborn stared at the two girls. He had heard what Hailey had just said and remembered her warning at Nono's party.

The twins ignored the arrival of Dino and his famiglia, waving the men away when they came to see if they were injured.

"I received news from the CEDEF team, but I never thought it would come to this..." Dino said quietly, stressed about the situation. "Are you all right?"

"The damage we received is quite substantial, but..." Reborn trailed off, staring at the field and his student.

"You okay, Hibari?" Yamamoto called. But Hibari just ignored Yamamoto's concern.

"You were surprisingly well behave," Gokudera commented.

Hibari stared at Tsuna. "If this situation can draw out that herbivore's true strength, then I won't interfere yet."

Everyone turned to stare at the brunette as well.

"Hey! We're going home." Reborn suddenly jumped forward and kicked Tsuna hard in the center of his back, ripping the boy out of his sullen mood. Tsuna fell onto the ground, hard and Reborn landed just as hard on the same place he kicked. "You need to recharge for tomorrows match."

"Why do you always kick me?" Tsuna demanded.

"Because I'm really vexed right now," Reborn replied easily and without remorse. He hopped off of Tsuna's back so that the boy could sit up.

"W-What kind of reason is that!"

Reborn smirked quickly, before he sobered and turned towards the twins. "How much did you know?" He wasn't asking if they already knew, he wanted to know how much.

Tsuna looked up at them as well when they didn't answer right away. "Risa-san…Hailey-chan…?"

Alicia stuffed her hands into her pockets and looked away, closing her eyes and frowning.

Hailey gripped one of her arms lightly and looked down at her feet guiltily. "All of it," she said quietly.

"What?" Tsuna said quietly.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Reborn practically growled.

"Because I told them not to," a strong voice rang out. Everyone turned around to look at the newcomer.

Hailey and Alicia gasped and dropped to one knee, bowing their heads in respect. "Boss!"

David had appeared and he was finally acting as Il Perduto de Dimenticato's Twelfth generation boss.

Reborn nodded once in recognition. "So you really are Dimenticato Dodicesimo, as I had suspected."

David bowed slightly as well. "That is correct, Sun Arcobaleno. I must apologize, but in order for my famiglia to stay as a neutral party, we cannot hand out all the secrets that we have learned. We have gathered a great deal of information on all the families and we know all of their plans, but if we were to give out information so easily to one family then it would cause a great deal of jealousy and anger."

"Even if the members of your family are Tsuna's guardians?" Reborn countered.

"Oh?" David turned to the twins. "Did you two accept the positions then?"

"No sir," Alicia answered.

"But you participated in the match yesterday!" Gokudera argued.

"That was so that Sawada Tsunayoshi did not lose the Ring Conflict. We did not officially accept the positions of Moon and Star Guardians!" Hailey answered without looking up.

"But they were assigned to be Tsuna's guardian," Reborn persisted.

"Hailey's and Alicia's mission was to watch over Vongola Decimo as well as guide his guardians. When we studied the range of candidates, we concluded that Sawada Tsunayoshi would be the one we would accept as the head of Vongola, and the only one would lend our assistance too. If Xanxus claims the position, then the Dimenticato will no longer share any ties with the Vongola." David smiled gently.

Reborn smirked. "So it's alright with you if those two join Tsuna's family."

"If Hailey and Alicia decide to help you, then there is nothing I can do about it." David chuckled. "I must ask that you take good care of them and not press them when it concerns breaking a rule of our famiglia. Even if they do join your ranks, they still must follow our family's guidelines. Is that alright with you?"

Reborn smirked and nodded.

"Oi," Alicia called over in a seriously pissed-off tone, with an eyebrow twitching dangerously. She tried to jump kick David. "You idiot boss-trainer! You said you wouldn't get involved in this! I told you, you always cause us more problems! Now look what you've done!" Alicia yelled as she tried to land an attack the man.

The spectators all sweat dropped at the subordinate attacking her superior.

David held his hands up as a sign of surrender as he dodged the young girl's attacks. "This was for your own good. In any case, don't you have to go greet your sister who was seriously ill last night?"

Alicia froze and spun around to see Hailey slowly getting to her feet, since she wanted avoid getting drawn into her sister's and David's brawl. But before Hailey could get back to her feet, she was mobbed by a very teary Alicia. Her sister held on tight as the two fell to the ground and cried her heart out on Hailey's shoulder…for a few seconds that is, till she tried punching Hailey with all her strength.

"You stupid idiot!" Alicia yelled as she tried to punch her sister, only to meet dirt. "I. Was. So. Worried. I'll. Kill. You. For. Doing. That." Each word was punctuated with a punch or kick. "I. Told. You. Not. To overwork. Yourself. Then you. Go. And do that!"

"Sorry, sorry," Hailey held her hands up in surrender, sweat dropping a little. "I really didn't mean to make you worry so much. But you should have already known that I wasn't going to die, I mean our mission isn't anywhere near over yet."

Alicia froze as she realized the truth in her sister's words. In the end she had worn herself to a frazzle needlessly as they couldn't exactly die till their mission was over. The black haired twin visibly deflated with a sigh. "Sorry she says. _Sorry_! And after everything I went through."

"I really am sorry," Hailey said, bending over so that she could peer up innocently into Alicia's eyes.

"You're forgiven," Alicia said with a sigh. She smiled and ruffled her sister's hair, and was rewarded with a giggle.

As Dino's family took care of the damaged school grounds, the rest returned home so that they could prepare for the last battle of the Ring Conflict.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Extra<strong>__ - Before Hailey and Alicia went on their 'six month mission'._

_Hailey and Alicia had just left Tsuna's office and were about to exit the hideout via one of the hidden entrances when Hailey was called back._

"_White Omnivore!"_

_Hailey turned around to see Hibari walking up to them. "What is it Kyoya?"_

_Hibari stopped in front of the two girls. "I need to quick word with you. _Just_ you," he emphasized when Alicia turned to go with as well._

_Hailey placed a hand on her sister and shook her head, to signify that she would go alone. She then turned to the raven haired man and signaled for him to lead the way. He took her wrist once again so that he could help her through the halls till they reached an empty room around the corner._

"_So what do you need, Kyoya?" Hailey asked again after she heard the door click shut._

_Hibari didn't say anything right away. "You're leaving again," He said simply._

"_Yes." Hailey didn't know where he was going with this._

"_But you'll be coming back?" He maintained the same cold professional tone._

"_I suppose I should." Hailey wasn't going to make any promises, especially when she knew she couldn't keep them._

"_And nothing's wrong with you?" Again the same cold voice that held no caring emotions._

_Hailey laughed lightly. "My, my Kyoya. It almost sounds like you care about my wellbeing." Hailey had meant for it to be a joke, but when Hibari didn't reply (or rather, snap back at her) Hailey began to wonder. "Kyoya?..."_

"_Why do I only feel this way around you?" Hibari muttered. Abruptly, he pulled Hailey closer and kissed her._

'What…?_' Hailey's eyes widened in shock. Her mind seemed to have frozen. She couldn't push him away._

_When Hibari pulled back, Hailey raised both hands to her lips and looked down. She couldn't help it…Hailey started to cry. She backed away as her tears increased._

"_I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm so, _so_ Kyoya." Hailey ran out of the room and out of the entrance._

_Glancing back at the closing doors, Hailey could see Hibari standing there. His face was emotionless, but his eyes told her that he was hurt. And that was her last memory of Hibari Kyoya._

* * *

><p><em>It was a couple weeks after Alicia had come back and told everyone that Hailey was now dead. Hibari was sitting in his office, trying to research what he could about the box weapons. He sighed and placed his elbows on his desk, resting his head on his joined hands.<em>

_There was a soft knock and Kusakabe walked in. He handed Hibari his regular reports, but also handed him a small thumb drive. "I think there's a file you might find valuable," Kusakabe answered Hibari's unasked question. He left the room, so that Hibari could continue his word and look at the files in peace._

_The stern man stared at the small file carrier for a second before plugging it into his computer. He was mildly surprised to find that there was only a short video stored on the device. Hibari opened the file to find that it was a surveillance video._

_He froze._

_It was the last video recording of Hailey, as she left for her very last mission. Hibari wanted to shut down the video right away, but something held him back and told him to watch._

_Hailey ran over to her sister and clung to her shirt. "Alicia, help me! Help me, please!" Hailey pleaded._

"_Hailey, what's wrong?" Alicia asked in concern._

"_I broke the rule, Alicia! I broke the rule! What should I do? What should I do?"_

_Alicia frowned as she tried to understand. "What do you mean? What rule did you break?"_

"_I fell in love! Can you believe that? I fell in love Kyoya." Hailey sobbed even harder._

"_But that doesn't necessarily mean you've broken the rule," Alicia reasoned, "I mean, he doesn't love you back right?...Right?"_

"_He does. He loves me too! He loves me too…" Hailey collapsed to her knees, taking her sister down with her._

"_What?...How do you know?" Alicia was scrambling for a reason to prove her sister wrong._

"_He kissed me!" Hailey looked up at her sister and smiled. "He kissed me just a while ago Alicia." Her smile turned into a pained and anguished expression. Alicia was stunned. "I thought…it would be alright if I was the only one…but he loved me too…and I'm going to hurt him…" Hailey managed through her sobs. "What do I do Alicia? I don't want to hurt Kyoya, but at this rate…"_

_Alicia could only stare at her sister in sympathy._

_Hailey let go of her sister and hugged herself. "I'm going to die in _three_ months. If I tell him I love him too, then he'll get hurt when I die. But if I reject him, then that's going to hurt him too! What do I do? I don't want to hurt Kyoya! Please…please help me! I love him so much…but…but…I'm going to be the one who hurts him the most!"_

"_Oh, Hailey." There was nothing Alicia could say to help her sister._

"_I'm so sorry Kyoya. So, _so _sorry. I wish you didn't fall in love with me so that you wouldn't get hurt. I wish I had kept my distance. I never wanted to be the reason you got hurt. I'm sorry. I'm sorry…" Hailey voice faded as she chocked up._

_The video stopped._

_Hibari didn't move. He just stared at the girl in silence. There was no visible trace of emotion on the man's face._

_But he finally understood why Hailey had apologized the way she did that day. It wasn't that she didn't love him. It was _because_ she harbored those feelings for him, and she didn't want to cause him any pain._

_Hibari pulled the thumb drive out the computer. He held it to his heart, holding onto the piece of memory tightly, squeezing it a little. Then placed the memory storing device into the inner pocket of his suit, where it would remain close to his heart and hidden from the rest of the world._

* * *

><p><strong>T^T So sad. I was listening to KHR OST 4 Track 26 - Kanashii Kako and In sorrow during the extra and flashback. I hope you like it! I tried my best for those who were losing interest.<strong>

**I hope to to finish my next chapter next week, but we'll have to see how nice my teachers plan to be. ^^"**

**Thanks for reading and please review!**


	15. Chapter XV

**Thanks you to everyone who reviewed! As per suggestion from AccessBlade I'm implementing a a little Haru jealousy thing, though it will take a little more time to develop. I also received a suggestion earlier to have Hailey take a nap on Hibari's lap or something, but for the life of me I can't find who wrote it! DX So whoever you are thank you very much, I put that there for you!**

**I hope you like this chapter and I hope to read your review about it later! ;) **

* * *

><p>Chapter XV<p>

The next morning Hailey and Alicia trudged into class slowly and barely hanging onto their consciousness. Though Alicia was definitely better off than her twin because while Alicia made it to her seat before she slumped forward Hailey just collapsed on the floor next to her desk and didn't get up.

"Need…sleep…so…tired…" Alicia mumbled.

Unfortunately for the duo, the two were surrounded by their admirers and other students of the like. The students asked why they had been gone so long and were overall very noisy.

Without saying a word to any of them, and without opening her eyes, Hailey pushed herself off the ground and slogged out of the room. It must have been because of her years of training, or she had a lot of luck, because she was able to make it to the top of the roof and climb up the ladder above the entry, without falling or tripping over something even once. She collapsed onto her side, next to the tall antenna, and fell asleep instantly.

However, it was not meant to be because a few minutes later a loud 'Tsuna-san!' from Haru ripped Hailey out of her slumber. More shouting, this time from Tsuna, made sure that Hailey wasn't going to go back to sleep anytime soon. Finally having enough of the racket Hailey forced herself up.

"Ah! Hailey-chan!" Kyoko called. "You're up here too?"

Hailey didn't answer. Instead she just rolled herself over the edge. Haru and Kyoko cried out in alarm, but to their surprise the girl landed on her feet easily. As they started to cheer, Hailey fell onto her front.

"Hailey-chan!" Haru, Kyoko, and Tsuna called out.

"Damn…so tired…loud…sleep…urg," Hailey mumbled. She slowly pushed herself off the ground and walked away. "Sumo wrestling…my ass…such a pain…need bed…rice balls later…" Hailey continued to mutter disjointedly as she walked away.

Tsuna sweat dropped as he heard the girl's voice fade away. He remembered Hailey and Alicia telling him something about how they weren't morning people and needed at _least_ nine hours of sleep if they wanted to operate normally, 10-12 hours were preferential.

"Is Hailey-chan and Risa-chan alright?" Kyoko asked. "They seemed really tired this morning."

"Oh! Uh…they're just really tired from the sumo match…thing…" Tsuna laughed nervously.

"We should give them the amulets we made to help them feel better!" Haru exclaimed excitedly.

"That might not be a good idea right now," Tsuna said hesitantly. "Alicia can be really unreasonable when she's really tired. Hailey told me that we shouldn't bother Alicia if she's sleeping because she might do something irrational."

"There's nothing to worry about Tsuna-kun," Kyoko said with a smile. "I'm sure Hailey-chan was just exaggerating. After all, Risa-chan has always been really nice."

Tsuna couldn't help but disagree. The image of Alicia trying to pulverize her boss and sister was still fresh in his mind.

"I think Risa-chan is kind of cute when she acts like that, don't you agree Tsuna?" Kyoko turned, smiling sweetly and obliviously, to the brunette male.

"Oh, uh, yeah," Tsuna agreed awkwardly, trying and failing to contain his blush.

A certain brunette took notice of the pink tinging the boy's cheeks, however her assumption of who caused this reaction in Tsuna was a bit off.

Bianchi, Fuuta, and I-pin left to go hand out some of the amulets that were made to the other boys, while Tsuna, Haru, and Kyoko left to go find Alicia and Hailey so that they could hand off a couple of their amulets. They walked back to their classroom and opened the door, only to have Alicia fall into Tsuna's arms.

Alicia blearily looked up. "Ah, good…Tsuna…carry me…sleep…to loud…irritating…Hailey ditched…need sleep…tired…escape…help," Alicia managed incoherently. Like her sister before her, her sentences were butchered to the point of one to two word rambling.

Tsuna blinked, confused.

"Eto, Tsuna-kun…Why don't you carry her to the nurses office," Kyoko offered. "I can tell the teacher that you're helping her! And that way Haru won't be discovered right away too!"

Tsuna blushed again and nodded. With the assistance of Haru and Kyoko, Tsuna was able to shift Alicia onto his back so that he could carry her to the nurse's. As Tsuna carried the girl down the hall, Haru blabbered on about random topics.

Suddenly Alicia's arms tightened their hold around Tsuna's shoulders. He blushed as Alicia hugged him tighter. Tsuna looked down to see if something was bothering her and was surprised to see the girl sleeping with a small smile.

"Tsuna's very nice and warm…" Alicia whispered in her sleep, causing Tsuna to blush even more. She snuggled her face into Tsuna's shoulder and sighed in her sleep, like she was feeling content. Tsuna snapped his head forward and tried with all his might to ignore the girl he was carrying, blushing furiously.

Haru finally took noticed and frowned. She took a few quick steps and stopped ahead of Tsuna with her hands on her hips and her feet spread apart. "Tsuna-san's not cheating on me right?" She suddenly demanded.

"What! No!" Tsuna exclaimed. Besides, how could he be cheating on her if he wasn't even going out with her? But Haru continued to glare at him. This was going to be troublesome.

* * *

><p>It was starting to get rather late in the evening when Hailey finally woke up, feeling groggy but no longer tired. The last thing she remembered was stumbling down the hallway then bumping into someone. After that it all went blank. She assumed that she must be at the nurse's office because she wasn't feeling stiff from lying down on the hard ground, but then again the pillow wasn't the softest either, not that it wasn't comfortable but it felt more like a limb than a feather encased pillow.<p>

Hailey rubbed an eye as she looked around, only to immediately jolt upwards with enough force to knock her off the couch that she had apparently been sleeping on.

"H-Hibari!" Hailey exclaimed. She stared up at the prefect incredulously. To her complete and utter shock, Hailey had woken up from her nap to find that she had used Hibari's lap as a pillow.

Hibari glanced down at the girl when she had woken up and fallen onto the floor. He had been leaning on his fist, his elbow resting on the arm of the couch, and holding a book with his other hand. He stared back at the girl who was leaning back on her hands and blushing madly. It was actually kind of amusing. Hibari had long since figured out that Hailey wasn't really the type that you can fluster easily, so the fact that he had done some made him feel a little proud of his accomplishment.

Hibari had found Hailey while he was patrolling the halls for trouble makers and disturbers of the peace. He could tell that she was completely out of it because she walked right _into_ him. She immediately collapsed right after, and acting on reflex, Hibari had caught her. Initially he was just going to dump her at the nurse's, but the girl had mumbled something along the lines of Shamal being a pervert and she wanted somewhere to rest peacefully, so Hibari had ended up taking her to his office.

"A-Ano…Hibari…" Hailey called out hesitantly, breaking Hibari's train of thought. "Why was I sleeping on your lap?"

Hm. He really didn't know how to answer that. Hibari had really only done it on impulse. "I found the extra heat enjoyable, and decided it would be payment for sleeping in here." Hibari turned back to his book, barely keeping down the urge to blush a little. It was strange. He had never felt like blushing because of something like this before. Then again, he had never been in a situation like this in the past.

"A-ah…" Was all Hailey could say. She stood up and brushed herself off robotically. "Well…I uh…should be going now…thanks for um…letting me sleep here…eto…ano…see you in a few hours…bye." Hailey left the room before she could make herself sound any more like an idiot.

* * *

><p>Hailey burst into the apartment with a loud bang as the door was practically ripped off its hinges. Alicia who had been reading peacefully on the couch jumped in surprise and sprang to her feet, preparing for some imminent attack.<p>

"Oh, Hailey. It's just you," Alicia said in relief and sat back down.

"Alicia! How could you just ditch me and leave me alone at school!" Hailey demanded.

Alicia plugged her ears and frowned. "What do you mean 'how could I ditch you', you ditched me first!"

"I don't remember that!" Hailey countered. "I can't believe you left me with Hibari! How could you, you heartless jerk!"

"Whadya mean, leave you with Hibari. I thought you were in you were in your room sleeping up till the point you slammed the door open."

"Well _no_! I was _not_ in my room! I just woke up a few minutes ago and guess what?" Hailey shouted sarcastically. "I found that I had fallen asleep and used Hibari's lap as a pillow!"

"And you're still alive?" Alicia asked skeptically. "How'd you manage that?"

"I don't know!" Hailey yelled as she threw her hands up over her head. "But a nice Hibari is actually kind of scary."

Alicia shrugged, returning to her book now that she knew that there was no danger. "Sounds like he like, likes you."

Hailey pointed her finger at her sister and glared. "Don't even _joke_ about that. You know the rules we're bound by."

"Yeah, yeah," Alicia waved her sister away.

"By the way," Hailey said, finally calming down. "When and how did you get home. I remember you being just as out of it as I was."

Alicia scrunched up her face and tapped her chin. "I'm not really sure. I think someone was carrying me and the next thing I know I'm waking up in the nurse's office. I think I might have kicked Shamal away from me on instinct as I was returning to consciousness."

"Weird."

"Tell me about it."

Hailey sighed and shook her head. "Well we should probably get ready for tonight. I have the antidote ready in the back."

"You know, I just can't understand our body's physiology in this world," Alicia said as she got off the couch. "I mean, we can't die even if we get blown to bits. But we can still get sick and poison can hurt us? Come on."

"We're not impervious to everything. Everything about us is still human, so viruses and poison can still mess with our systems. That's why even if we live after being blown to bits, we still feel pain." Hailey reached into a safe in her room and pulled out a couple syringes.

Alicia's face scrunched in distaste. "You just had to go with shots now didn't you?"

Hailey rolled her eyes. "I hate 'em to you know. But we need all of it to go straight into a bloodstream if we don't want _any_ of the effects of the poison."

"This is why I just wanted to sit on the sidelines and watch," Alicia said tiredly. Hailey injected the antidote into both of them and then the two proceeded to get ready for the sky match that night.

* * *

><p>Just like the night of their match, Hailey and Alicia were leaning against the wall, waiting for the Varia to arrive. Tsuna and Reborn walked onto the school grounds a little while after the twins had arrived. Tsuna had a determined look etched into his eyes. His aura gave off a stronger and more confident feeling than it usually did.<p>

Reborn and the twins nodded to each other in acknowledgement and Hailey gave a short wave to Tsuna who smiled a little at them. They took a position of standing a little off to the side from the gates and the two girls and turned their attention to the center of the courtyard where they were sure Xanxus would arrive.

Right before 11 there was a bright flash of light along with a flurry of wind and the remainder of the Varia arrived at the school. Yamamoto, Ryohei, Gokudera, and Basil ran through the gates when they saw the flash as well.

"The other side seems to be in good shape," Reborn said darkly.

Tsuna's frown deepened a little bit and it seemed like he was deaf to the sounds of his two closest friends calling out to him. "Xanxus."

The scarred leader of the Varia smirked. "You came, trash."

"We've been waiting for you." The two Cervello jumped down from the roof.

'_I know Hailey and I do the same thing in order to get around faster, but I can't help but hope that they break an ankle or something when they land_,' Alicia thought wistfully.

The Cervello straightened up. "Now, all the guardians on Sawada's side, Star, Moon, Storm, Sun, Rain, and mist have arrived."

"Mist?" Tsuna and the others, save Reborn and the twins, looked around and spotted Chrome. "You're…"

"All that remain are cloud and thunder," The Cervello continued.

Tsuna turned back to the Cervello. "Remain?" He and the rest turned when they heard the sound of footsteps approaching. "Hibari-san!"

"That do you want?" The prefect asked in a bored and uncaring tone.

Hailey and Alicia glanced at each other. Both were frowning, they didn't like the compulsory summons that they had received. Actually Alicia had burnt the letter before they left their apartment. For some reason it bugged them that the black and white panthers were at the calling of the Cervello. They looked back when they heard Tsuna shout out.

Hailey growled a little when she saw Lambo, barely managing to breath, in the hands of a Cervello.

Alicia hissed a little. "Careful Cervello," she warned. "The Dimenticato will be declaring war if any of our charges die by your hands."

The Cervello tensed a little bit, but continued their explanation for the sky match. "The reason we issued the compulsory summons is because the Sky Match risks the six of the rings, as well as the Guardians' lives."

"Six?" Tsuna asked softly.

"The Star and Moon ring belong to a separate sky," Alicia explained. "Like we said, you are the day and we are the night." She sighed, irritated. "And yet we are still at risk as well, aren't we?"

The Cervello nodded. "As guardians, even if you aren't a part of the main set, you are still bound to protect the sky. Therefore your lives will be wagered as well."

"Risk the rings _and_ the Guardians' lives?" Tsuna questioned, horrified and angered.

Alicia turned back to her sister and tuned out the rst of the argument. "David and Ali are taking care of the grunts located in town right?"

"Yeah," Hailey nodded, "and we're making sure that the stronger grunts are left for Lanchia to take. Actually, he should be getting off the plane right now, so he'll be here pretty soon." Hailey waved off the Cervello girl collecting the rings since she had already given the ring back to them.

The two girls grimaced as they were handed a camera equipped/monitor wristband.

"Hey Cervello~!" Hailey sang as she waved for the two pinked headed girls' attention. "How about we make a deal! We won't give away your secrets and we'll play by your rules and in return we don't have to participate in this match!"

"No deal. Even if you were to divulge the secrets for this match, the rules have already been decided and you have no choice but to follow."

Hailey sighed, disappointed.

"You didn't honestly think they'd let us get away just like that did you?" Alicia questioned skeptically.

"Not really, but I couldn't help but hope." Hailey sighed again, but sobered up soon after and turned her attention to Xanxus. She smiled with her eyes closed, though it was filled with danger and sent chills up most of the groups' spines. "Xanxus, why don't we make a bet. If Tsuna here defeats you, then Alicia gets to see the specs for your weapons as well as study the weapons themselves for as long as she wants."

Xanxus smirked. "Heh, then when I win you two will come work for me." It wasn't a request, it was a demand. Xanxus was confident that he was going to win, and in this case he'll be able to gain a couple of strong subordinates and lose the two pieces of trash that he picked up.

"Eh~!" Hailey smiled wider. Then she broke out into a cruel sounding laugh. "You want the two of us to work for you." Hailey slowly opened her eyes. "Alright, deal. You kill Tsuna, and then the panthers will work for you."

"What!" Tsuna screeched. "How could you agree to work for him so easily! Especially after everything he's done."

Alicia clapped the boy on his back, making him stumble forward a little. "That just means you have to win right. Jeez, you should have realized that on your own."

Hailey skipped, while Alicia stalked, off to their arena.

Reborn smirked. "Dame-Tsuna that just shows how much confidence they have in you."

"Eh?" Tsuna looked down at Reborn.

"I told you already. The panthers have a 98 percent success rate. They won't wager anything that would place them in a harmful position unless they were sure about the deal they were making." Reborn turned toward where the two girls had disappeared to.

* * *

><p>"Tsuna better win, I don't want to work for an anger-management freak!" Hailey complained down to her sister.<p>

"Then why make the deal," Alicia countered with irritation. "You probably could have found the construction manual on your own anyways!"

"Yeah, but looking at the actual thing is better," Hailey reasoned.

Alicia chuckled a little bit when she heard the four boys cheer for Tsuna. "Looks like we successfully evaded that ridiculous circle cheer thing they do, again."

"Ah! Hailey and Risa already left!" Ryohei suddenly exclaimed.

"Those two," Gokudera grumbled threateningly. "Not cheering for Juudaime, those-!"

"We can hear you, you moron," Alicia called out through their wristbands. The boys jumped a little. "Idiots." Alicia sniggered as Gokudera ranted and raged as he left for his field.

Hailey moaned a little when she heard Colonello and Shamal. "I want to heckle Tsuna too!"

Tsuna deadpanned as Hailey's words echoed through the courtyard.

"Yo," Hailey said to the other prospective guardians. Carmina and Danielle eyed them wearily. "Look I don't really feel like fighting you. So do you mind just letting us do whatever we please?"

Carmina scowled. "You may have gotten me that one time, but you won't be getting away so easily this time around!"

Hailey sighed. "I thought so."

The four girls watched as a Cervello hopped on and off the tower quickly, depositing the two rings.

They heard Ryohei ask about the poles, then Gokudera and Bel asking about if they were going to fight again.

"Please do what you wish. That it, if you can," The Cervello said ominously.

The twins frowned a little when they felt the needle from the wristband inject the death heater poison into them. They watched as Carmina and Danielle fell.

"Well, I guess I better get to work." Hailey sighed but used her wired to lower Carmina to the ground then hopped down onto the top of the pole to retrieve their rings. Alicia tied up her own opponent in the meantime.

"So who should we go and assist?" Alicia asked as she fitted the ring into the slot in Danielle's wristband.

Hailey did the same for Carmina. "Well, why don't I heckle Hibari while you go for Ryohei. Then I'll go to see Yamamoto and you can go take care of Chrome. After that we can meet up at the sports field for the last part of the fight."

Alicia nodded and stood up.

"How do you know so much?" Carmina asked, still panting a little. "How can you possibly already know what's going to happen?"

"You sound like you already know how this fight will turn out," Danielle added.

"That's because we do," Alicia said bluntly.

Hailey looked up at the sky. "We've taken everything into account. By putting their pasts and ability to evolve in battle into the equation, we can predict what the final outcome will be." Not to mention they read the manga and watched the anime, but they couldn't tell anyone else that, now could they?

The two girls walked off in opposite directions, heading toward the guardian they would help.

* * *

><p>Hailey arrived at Hibari's battle field to see him on his knees and leaning against the tower. The tower had two of its legs destroyed, but still needed the other two to go before it would fall.<p>

"My, my," Hailey said in a taunting tone. "I never thought I would see the great Hibari Kyoya looking so weak. It's kind of tragic."

Hibari looked up and glared at her.

Hailey smiled. "Come now Hibari, don't look like that. I'm just having a little fun. Besides, don't you want me to get that ring for you?"

"I don't need anyone to save me," Hibari snarled and shoved himself to his feet.

"Oh? But what can a weakened Hibari do?" Hailey sneered. "You're so weak right now, that I could knock you down with my little finger."

Hibari snarled and fiercely attacked the pole till if finally crumbled.

Hailey smiled sincerely. "Good job! I knew pissing you off was the right way to go!" She ran over to where the ring had tumbled and took it back to Hibari. She inserted the ring and stood up. "You know, teasing and taunting you was more difficult than I had first anticipated. But I'm glad I could irk you at least a little bit."

Hibari looked up at the white haired girl blankly.

"I didn't want to hurt your pride by saving you, so I had to find a way for you to get that ring down. And since you get stronger when you're mad, I had to find a way to piss you off!"

Hibari looked away and stood up. "Get going omnivore," Hibari said as he walked away.

Now that surprised Hailey. She hadn't expected to be upgraded to omnivore anytime soon. But she shook her head and followed Hibari.

"You know, if you go to octopus-head's arena you'll get to fight that bloodthirsty prince," Hailey said offhandedly.

Hibari smirked.

While he went to go bite Bel to death, Hailey jumped up into the hole and inserted the storm ring that Hibari had knocked out of Bel's hands and back up onto the third floor, into Gokudera's wristband.

"Thanks whitey," Gokudera grunted as he pushed himself to his feet.

Hailey ignored him. "In return for helping you, I want you to go save Lambo alright? He's in trouble and the right hand man is more suited to saving him. I'll go take care of Yamamoto."

Gokudera clicked his tongue in irritation but nodded and ran off. Hailey could tell that he was pleased that she had called him Tsuna's right hand man.

* * *

><p>While Hailey was running to all her destinations, Alicia walked leisurely up to the sun guardian arena. Tsuna was going to win anyways so why rush? When Alicia reached Ryohei's previous battle ground, she immediately hoisted herself up the pole and climbed up to the top.<p>

"This is a pain in the ass," She muttered as she slid down the pole and ran over to the boxing obsessed male.

"Thanks Kiyomizu number one," Ryohei panted after the girl had inserted the ring into the open slot in his wrist. "Can you-"

"Yeah, yeah," Alicia cut him off and walked over to Lusseria, giving him the antidote as well. She walked back over to Ryohei and helped him up a little so that he could lean against the pole. "Listen up Ryohei. I want you to pay _really_ close attention. When you aren't feeling dizzy anymore I want you to go over to the gym and blow it up."

"Blow it up?" Ryohei asked.

Alicia nodded. "Yes, blow it up. Use your maximum cannon thing. Got it?"

"That's an EXTREME idea! I'll do that."

"Good." Alicia stood up and started walking toward the gym.

* * *

><p>Noises from the wristband caught Hailey's attention. She raised it to her ear so that she could hear it better.<p>

"Why is the cloud's pole…" the Cervello trailed off.

"Hibari destroyed the pole and took the antidote," Reborn explained to everyone.

"Impossible." The Cervello countered. "Death Heater is a potent poison that could even subdue a wild elephant."

"Hibari hates being restrained more than anything else," Reborn said with a smile.

Hailey snickered.

"But just because he does…" A Cervello interrupted.

Reborn ignored their comment and continued. "His nature, which hates to be restrained, overpowered the poison. That's why he was chosen. As a noble, solitary, and floating cloud that protects the family from an independent stance, without being bound."

"I'll be going on ahead Hibari!" Hailey waved and walked away.

"Ah! That's Hailey-dono!" Basil called out.

Hailey looked down at the monitor and saw the camera view switch to her and Alicia's fields, revealing that it was lacking two members. before flicking to a close up of her face. Hailey looked around and spotted a camera. She made a face at it before she took out her gun and shot it.

"The ever present star who watches and knows all, and can only truly shine during the dark of night. Who leads the way when the family is lost. Hailey probably already knew what was going to happen during this match, so she and Alicia took the antidote beforehand."

"Impossible!" The Cervello shouted.

Hailey 'happened' to be passing by the spectators' area and opened up the window. She cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted down to the group watching below. "I told you, you should have taken the deal! Serves you right! You can't beat my information system, HA!" Hailey smiled smugly and continued on her way.

Reborn smirked and continued his explanation of why the others didn't have to worry about the other guardians, like Lambo.

"And like the how the Moon and the Sun share the sky equally, Alicia aided Ryohei." The screen flashed to show Alicia walking away from the boxing addict.

Hailey smiled and opened the door leading into the Rain Guardian's battle arena. Using her wires, she swung herself to the top of the tower and retrieved the ring of rain. "There you go," she muttered as she popped in rain ring into Yamamoto's wristband.

Yamamoto smiled and laughed weakly. "Thanks Hailey."

Hailey smiled back. "Why don't you go help Chrome. She's the only one who hasn't received the antidote yet."

Yamamoto nodded. "Alright."

The two walked out of the ruined and soggy building and nearly ran into Hibari.

"Hey there Hibari!" Hailey said cheerfully. "I guess Bel ran away before you could bite him to death huh?"

"Hn," the prefect grunted in reply. He tossed his ring to Yamamoto, who caught it easily.

"Good thinking! Yamamoto take those two rings and go help the Mist guardian," Hailey instructed. The baseball nut nodded and ran off.

Hibari started to walk off as well, but Hailey caught his wrist to stop him. He tried to hit her with a tonfa, but she evaded it.

"Hibari, let me at least cover your wounds. I'm sure you don't want to be restrained because of something like blood loss right?" Hailey reasoned.

Hibari looked like he was going to try attacking her again, but leaned against the wall instead. Hailey sighed in relief and chuckled a little bit as she took out some bandages and took care of the cuts.

Hailey smiled a little at her handy work as she straightened. "I'm going to look after Lambo now, I guess you'll do whatever." Hailey waved and ran off.

* * *

><p>Alicia grumbled as she carried the little cow boy towards the spectators area.<p>

She had been walking away from the older Sasagawa to go and assist Chrome when she had run into Gokudera. Well actually _he_ had run into her. After a lot of cursing and yelling from both sides, Gokudera had taken the sun and thunder rings and run off. So now Alicia had to deposit Lambo somewhere where he would be relatively safe before she went to go help Chrome.

"Hey there Reborn, Colonello, Basil, everyone," Alicia said wearily as she stopped by the group.

"Alicia-dono!" Basil said in surprise.

"What are you doing here woman!" Ken shouted. "You should be going to help Dokuro."

Alicia frowned with her eyes closed and plugged one of her ears. "Shut up lover boy," ken blushed and started to protest, but Alicia cut him off. "Chrome's taken care of. I'm here because I needed to get Lambo to a somewhat safe place before I went back into the fray."

The group turned their attention back to the screen. Tsuna was till down from Xanxus's last attack and it looked like he was about to be finished off. But to Xanxus's surprise the flame on Tsuna's head returned.

The group cheered as Tsuna propelled himself back onto his feet. But Alicia could only frown when they thought it was the Zero Point Breakthrough.

"Hurry up and finish it," Alicia said more to herself than to anyone else.

But Reborn had caught it. "What do you mean?"

Alicia's frown deepened. "That's not the real Zero Point Breakthrough. Not even close."

"What!" Basil exclaimed. "What do you mean? That's the technique we were training Sawada-dono for!"

Alicia spared a quick glance at Basil before returning her gaze to the giant screen. "I know the Zero Point Breakthrough, and that's not it. Nowhere near close to _that_ technique. And as you can see, Xanxus knows it as well. _But_ if Tsuna can finish that technique you trained him to use, then he will gain a very useful skill that he will have invented on his own. Something Vongola Primo didn't think of."

Tsuna placed his hands together again, but shifted one so that he was making a small square or diamond with his thumbs and index fingers. "Zero Point Breakthrough…Revised."

Alicia smirked. "Here it comes."

A flash of white caught her eye. Alicia and the rest of the imprisoned group looked up to the screen to see Hailey running across the field next to the two sky flame users.

Xanxus laughed at mocked Tsuna's announcement of the revised skill. He saw the white panther running close by and smirked as an idea formulated in his head. "Aim carefully? Fine I'll shoot before you have the chance to use that technique." He fired at Hailey.

"Hailey!" Everyone watching screamed, save Reborn who just frowned.

There was a blast and smoke covered the area.

* * *

><p><strong>Oh no! I guess you're going to have to wait to see if Hailey made it out all right. Please tell me how you felt about this chapter! If you have any suggestions about something to add in I may add it! <strong>

**I hoped you liked it! Please _ review_!**


	16. Chapter XVI

**Hey there! I finished this pretty quickly! Actually this was supposed to be part of the last chapter, but I felt like how I originally wrote it didn't flow well so I took out and rewrote this part as its own chapter! That's also the reason the last chapter was a lot duller than some were expecting.**

**Please review! I only got two for my last chapter even though I had about 63 visitors when I uploaded it TT-TT**

**I feel like I should warn everyone, this chapter Alicia and Hailey do cuss a lot. But in their defense, they are really pissed off and you'll see why!**

**Hope you like this chapter! And I'll have another chapter of Angel orDemonout soon!**

* * *

><p>Chapter XVI<p>

The dust cloud took a painstakingly long lime to fade away. But when it did everyone could only stop and stare. All the cameras were focused on the young girl and the white flames on her forehead, hands, and forearms.

"My, oh my," Hailey said slowly as she straightened and gradually lowered her arm till it was finally below her face, revealing glowing light blue (almost white) eyes. "If I hadn't called out my flames in time, that blast really could have killed me. I don't know what you hoped to accomplish with that Xanxus. But…" Hailey smirked, "You're ten years too early to challenge the likes of me in a battle of flames. No worries, I won't interfere in the sky match. Tsuna will be the one to kick your ass." Hailey's flames dispersed and she ran off.

"You moron," Alicia said loudly as her sister approached.

Hailey shrugged. "I didn't honestly expect him to attack me."

"Man, you really are a mafia bad news magnet." Alicia shook her head in disbelief. "Here, take the runt. I'm going to go help Chrome."

"KK, see ya." Hailey waved her sister off. "Hey there Dino, Squalo." She didn't seem surprised to see them there.

"That's the white panther and soon to be star guardian for you," Dino said with a smile. Squalo just ignored her.

Hailey looked around to see Reborn eyeing her critically. "What?"

The small hitman just smirked before turning back to the screen. "You've just confirmed a few of my suspicions."

'_Okay, what the hell did I do wrong this time_?' Hailey thought sarcastically.

"That way amazing Hailey-dono!" Basil said excitedly. "I was not aware that thou could use flames like Sawada-dono, master, and I could!"

"Er, yeah. Every member of the Dimenticato Family knows how," Hailey said absentmindedly as she checked on Lambo's condition.

Reborn smirked again.

'_Okay, did I just say something I shouldn't have?...I can't think of anything. I mean, it wasn't exactly a secret that our family new how to use flames. So why is Reborn smiling like that!_' Hailey puzzled to herself. She couldn't really think of anything so she just sat down near the spectators' box.

"Oi! Woman! Shouldn't you be out there helping Dokuro and the rest?" Ken said loudly.

"Dude, I'm two feet from you, so you don't have to yell," Hailey said wearily and rubbed her ear. "And in any case, everything has been taken care of. I really don't have anything left to do. Actually neither does Alicia, but because I don't want to listen to your nonstop complaining, I asked her to go look after your little girlfriend."

"S-She's not my-" Ken started to stutter, but Hailey cut him off like her sister before her.

Hailey waved her hand at the boy while keeping her eyes on the screen. "Yeah, yeah I know."

"So why aren't you going out there to help the kid?" Shamal asked.

Hailey didn't avert her eyes from the screen. "This is Tsuna's fight. It was his family and friends who were threatened and if anyone aided Tsuna for Xanxus's defeat then that scarred idiot would just keep coming back. If Tsuna defeats him all on his own, then Xanxus will have no choice but accept the fact that he was never meant to be Decimo."

"That's _if_ that brat can defeat Xanxus," Squalo sneered. "All that rage will give him the power to realize his ambitions!"

Hailey finally turned her attention back to the people in the observation area. But she looked sad. "I know much more than you Squalo. This match is rather cruel. Fate has already been set for these two and yet they are forced to battle like this."

"What could you possibly know?" Squalo demanded.

Hailey turned away and closed her eyes, frowning a little. "I know the reason for crib incident eight years ago. You're not the only one who knows Xanxus's secret. After all," Hailey smiled sadly, "I am the white panther of Il Perduto e Dimenticato Famiglia. I'm supposed to know everything, even things before it happens right?"

"We don't need your pity," The white haired man growled.

Hailey shook her head. "It's not pity. It's sympathy and remorse."

"Remorse?" Dino asked. He studied the girl and saw a flash of guilt in her eyes.

Hailey turned her gaze to the ground, not wanting to look anyone in the eye. She decided to answer Dino's question, with a question of her own. "Who do you think has it better? The one who knows nothing and lives life trying to carve out their own future, when it really has already been carved out for them; Or the person who knows everything about the cruel fates of others, but must never intervene?"

Her question earned Hailey a lot of frowns of confusion and suspicion.

"Ignorance is bliss," Shamal finally muttered, relieving Hailey of all their stares.

Squalo glared at the girl, but Hailey smiled back sadly again before returning her attention to the screen.

* * *

><p>Alicia jogged over to the gym and peeked inside. Gokudera and Yamamoto looked like they were in a lot of trouble because of Mammon's illusions. She looked around to see Bel and Mammon watching the two teenagers comfortably away from any danger from their perch near the side of the gym.<p>

From the corner of her eye, Alicia could see Ryohei approaching the other side of the structure and came up with an idea to retrieve Chrome from the building so that she didn't have to get hit with the ripped pieces of the gym when the boxer destroyed the building. The poor girl didn't need any extra injuries. Right as the white haired boy pulled his fist back to punch Alicia rushed forward and pulled Chrome out of the gym. She was fast and efficient, effectively preventing Mammon or Bel from interfering. Reborn, Hailey, Squalo, and Shamal were probably the only ones who caught the flash of movement from the camera.

Alicia used her own body to shield Chrome from the gust of wind and debris that Ryohei's punch caused. The black panther pulled one of Chrome's arms around her should and walked slowly back over to the wreckage to see how the other two boys had fared.

"A-are you alright," Gokudera called out to Yamamoto as the smoke cleared away. He pushed the pieces of the wall or ceiling, it was difficult to tell at this point, off of himself and looked around.

Yamamoto coughed before answering due to the dust still circulating through the air. "Yeah. But what was that? The entire gym was blown away."

"That blow…" Gokudera trailed off as he looked around. Then a thought came into mind and he turned quickly toward where the blow originated from. "Could it be?"

The two teenagers could make out Sasagawa Ryohei standing proudly where the door used to be, holding his wrist and smiling. "Sorry. I hate to be dull."

Alicia whistled. "Wow, he really did blow the place apart!"

"Ah! Gun freak!" Gokudera shouted and turned to the side to see Alicia holding up Chrome.

"I'm glad you're all safe," Ryohei said with a nod.

"Safe?" Gokudera yelled incredulously. "There are other ways to save people! What if we were blown away too?"

"Now, now. It's alright," Yamamoto said, coming up behind the silverette. "Thanks to that, we were saved."

Ryohei nodded again. "Yamamoto's right."

"I don't want to hear you say it!" Gokudera shouted at the older boy.

Alicia smirked. "You should be thankful to him octopus-head. Mammon was about to pop your head off with his illusion."

"I don't want to hear it from you either!" Gokudera yelled again.

"You should be thankful to Kiyomizu number one too, octopus-head," Ryohei said calmly. "If she hadn't told me to come save you guys by blowing up the gym with my maximum cannon, then you three would be goners."

"What!" Gokudera shouted dubiously. "You told him to blow up the gym with us inside?"

"But look, see Chrome is alright." Alicia held Chrome up a little higher.

"What about us you stupid gun freak!" Gokudera raged.

Alicia shrugged and started to walk away.

"Don't ignore me you stupid gun-freak!" Gokudera continued to rant.

"I don't know about you, but I'm going to go check on Tsuna." This effectively made Gokudera shut up.

"Now we're all back in action!" Ryohei said excitedly.

Alicia continued toward the final destination as the other boys had their attention drawn back to Mammon and Bel. She was out of earshot before long.

* * *

><p>Hailey and the rest in the observation area watched as Tsuna dodged Xanxus's attack instead of absorbing it. Reborn explained to the ones who didn't understand why Tsuna took that course of action.<p>

Xanxus propelled himself off the ground and discarded his guns so that he could attack Tsuna head on with his flames of rage and prevent the younger boy from absorbing it. But Tsuna didn't back down and caught Xanxus's hands in his own.

"Tsuna! What are you planning?" Dino exclaimed.

"Tsuna plans to take on that flame," Colonello observed out loud.

"But in that grapple, he can't use the Zero Point Breakthrough!" Basil exclaimed worriedly.

"Not the revised version anyways," Hailey muttered under her breath, not really intending for anyone to hear her words but Reborn still caught it.

"It's over," Squalo said smugly.

Hailey closed her eyes and spoke a little louder. "For Xanxus."

Both males tried to overwhelm the other. Their hands started to light up with the force of their flames till there was an explosion in the air and a burst of bright light concealed the two and messed up the cameras.

As the light faded away and the cameras readjusted, the view showed that the field was covered in fog. Slowly the form of Xanxus and his frozen hands were revealed, followed by Tsuna soon after.

Reborn smirked and told everyone what he believed had happened and what he had discovered with the development of Tsuna's technique which was Primo's original creation. "Am I right?" The young looking hitman asked, turning to Hailey. Everyone turned their attention to the girl as well.

Hailey gave a short nod. "Correct. That is the _true_ Zero Point Breakthrough created by Vongola Primo. Well I'm going to go take a walk now. I'll leave Lambo here next to all of you." Hailey stood up and walked away.

* * *

><p>As Alicia walked back Chrome started to wake up. The older twin paused and lowered the female mist guardian to the ground.<p>

"Careful, you're going to be pretty dizzy from the poison for a short while. Not to mention all the stress your body went through when you couldn't fight back with your illusions."

Chrome looked up and nodded a little. She was panting and it was obvious that she was feeling the after effects of the battle.

Alicia took a knee in front of Chrome and looked back at the girl over her shoulder. "Get on. It'll be easier and faster if I just carried you. Besides the sooner Ken and Chikusa see that you're alright the sooner they can stop griping to me and my sister."

Chrome hesitated initially, but when Ken and Chikusa were mentioned she nodded and pulled herself onto Alicia's back.

"Alright, let's go," Alicia muttered under her breath and the two continued toward where the final act of the Varia arc would take place.

* * *

><p>Hailey had gone back to their fighting arena so that she could release the other two girls. Carmina had fainted after receiving the antidote so Danielle watched her wearily, noting every movement so that if Hailey attacked, she would be ready.<p>

"Don't worry. I'm not going to harm your friend there; after all we shouldn't be fighting each other. Right, Danielle Dimenticato?" Hailey said with a soft smile.

Danielle sighed. "So you knew after all."

Hailey nodded. "But I figured your friend there didn't, so I just used the information she would most likely believe."

Danielle smiled ruefully. "Thanks."

"We should get going," Hailey said with a slight huff as she lifted Carmina by one of her arms. Danielle took the other one and they started heading back to the main group at a quick pace. "I guess you became friends with this girl when you arrived in America as a Dimenticato huh?"

"Yeah. I would sneak out of the house because I was having a hard time dealing with my death and all. That's when I met Carmina, and we became really good friends. David found out, of course, and set up a fake family for me."

"I knew there was another young Dimenticato somewhere in America, since David and Zach were always going back and forth between us and that one location."

"Yup, and that's probably why Carmina thought the Dimenticato killed my parents, since when they reached they appointment day they were at HQ."

Hailey nodded. Appointment day is the term the Dimenticato used to refer to their disappearance or death day in their trial world. "I figured that that was also how you convinced Xanxus that you two were from the Dimenticato, when Carmina wanted to become his two Star and Moon guardians. You have the moon flame right?"

Danielle nodded. "At first Carmina wanted revenge for me, even though I told her it was okay. But then I think she developed feelings for Xanxus."

"I thought so. The look in her eye was too obsessive. But the idea of two moon flames at once in this world is rather intriguing. I'm sure this is the first time in their history that that has ever happened."

"Probably."

"So your charge is Xanxus, correct?"

"Yeah. How much do you know about me anyway?"

"Everything." Hailey said bluntly. "Even the life you lived before you died."

"We're in different worlds, so I find that rather impossible."

"I thought so at first two. But this is a _parallel_ world. We have our own reflections here."

Danielle's eyebrows shot up in surprise for a short instant.

"I can even determine your appointment day from all the information I've gathered, but that's getting too personal." Every person has a right to keep their deaths secret. For Dimenticato's that is the one boundary line they will not cross.

Danielle was quiet for a little bit. "I know it's personal and all, but I notice that your presence is diminishing a little. So may I ask when your appointment day is?"

Hailey smiled sadly. "I don't mind. Just don't ask me about my past life…Well it really depends on how you look at it. But I guess in total the number of days I have left is around two months from my arrival day."

Danielle gasped. "So starting from tomorrow, your countdown will begin? Does your sister know?"

"No…No she would go berserk if she knew. She'd do more damage by trying to fight it, when our fate is inevitable."

"I see…"

"Still, on the bright side, we got to meet someone from our previous world. Since there are so many parallel worlds I didn't expect to see someone else from our realm other than my sister!"

Danielle smiled. "Yes, it is rather nice."

"Danielle…" Hailey hesitated for a bit before she continued. "May I ask a favor of you in ten years?"

* * *

><p>Alicia made it back to the field just in time to see Xanxus get frozen solid. She set Chrome down and leaned her against the wall while Alicia waited for her sister. But she didn't have to wait long. Hailey rounded the corner helping Danielle carry Carmina. They leaned the red head against the wall a few feet away from Chrome. Alicia noticed that they two were talking animatedly with each other in hushed tones.<p>

From the panicked tones from the other males in the observation box, Danielle, Hailey, and Alicia determined that nobody noticed the five girls' arrival or that four of them were watching nearby.

Hailey asked Alicia to stay with Chrome, while she aided Danielle with something. And although Alicia was still untrusting of the other moon guardian candidate, she trusted her sister's decisions so Alicia agreed. When Mammon took out and lit the six rings Danielle and Hailey jumped over to the frozen Xanxus.

"Hailey-dono!" Basil cried out happily. He believed that they still had a chance if the prospective star guardian had arrived, especially since she was so strong.

"Good, now they can stop Xanxus from being released and winning the sky match!" Colonello called out.

But Reborn frowned.

"Erm," Hailey rubbed the back of her head nervously. "Actually I'm here to offer my flame to help release Xanxus."

"You're betraying Tsuna?" Shamal accused.

"I thought everything you did so far was so that Tsuna would win the sky match!" Dino shouted.

Hailey sighed. "I'm not turning against Tsuna, but I have my reasons for helping the Varia."

"No!" Tsuna choked out tiredly.

Hailey and Danielle, Alicia had given the moon ring to her at Hailey's request, lit their rings with flames and started melting Xanxus from behind while Mammon melted the front.

"The Zero Point Breakthrough ice is…" Shamal trailed off.

"Melting," Dino finished.

"VOOOII! Good going!" Squalo yelled.

Hailey and Danielle backed away once the ice was melted.

"Let me warn you now, Mammon…Bel…Xanxus…" Hailey said seriously. "What you seek is impossible. We chose to protect Tsuna for a reason. And that extra power you were talking about isn't achieved in a very nice manner. Some have gone insane in the attempt to get it."

"Give me the rings," Xanxus muttered, snubbing the white panther's words.

Mammon ignored the white haired girl and continued to fit the six guardian rings onto the chain Xanxus was given and slid the sky ring onto Xanxus's finger.

Hailey closed her eyes. "Just don't say I didn't warn you."

Hailey could hear the rings start to glow and Xanxus laughed believing that he had obtained the power and won.

"Power! An unending power is overflowing!" Xanxus cried out excitedly. "This is the proof of being the successor to Vongola! Finally, finally! It's coming true! Now I can become Vongola the Tenth!"

But everything went wrong for him. Xanxus gave a shout and fell. It was like several knives had cut his body.

"The rings…Xanxus…" Tsuna said in shock and horror. "The rings rejected Xanxus."

Hailey finally opened her eyes and surveyed the broken Xanxus. "What is done is done." Hailey crossed her arms and let Squalo share with everyone everything he knew about Xanxus's secret. After which Tsuna tried to convey to Xanxus that Nono had always accepted him as his real son.

But Xanxus wouldn't have any of it. All he wanted was to be the boss and have everyone look up and serve him. He would not listen to the Cervello this time either. "If it won't come true, then I'll defeat everything in my path until it does!"

"I agree Boss. Let's do it!" Bel said excitedly and pulled out a few knives.

"Just as planned," Mammon agreed.

A few sticks of dynamite were thrown and detonated between the Cervello and two Varia members. Gokudera, Chrome, Yamamoto, and Ryohei came together to stand against the last two Varia members. Alicia remained where she was, just watching as the scene played out.

But Bel and Mammon wouldn't back down. While the Varia's mist guardian explained to the teenagers that elite force of 50 Varia members would be arriving soon, Hailey went back over to the observation box.

"Please wait a moment," the Cervello said, stepping forward. "We cannot allow outside interference during the match."

Bel glanced at the two pink haired girls. "I don't care."

"But-" one Cervello started but was cut off and killed by the Varia storm guardian.

"They finally did it," Shamal said gravely.

"If that's how they're going to act," Colonello said as he reached for his gun, "we can support Tsuna's side! Let us out, kora!"

"In this case you shouldn't have any complaints," Dino agreed and pulled out his whip.

"I shall fight as well!" Basil pulled out his own weapon as well.

"Very well." The other Cervello hopped back a distance from the Varia members. "We will disqualify the Varia side and turn off the observation area's infrared sensors."

But a confirmation from Reborn proved that the sensors hadn't been deactivated. To make things worse for the few in the box, Mammon told them that they had already tampered with it.

"We can't lift a finger," Reborn said grimly.

"As of yet, anyways," Hailey said as she walked up. She bent down by the edge of the box and began fiddling with the mechanism. She whistled. "Not too bad of a system. If I'm not careful I could really kill you all!"

"You shouldn't sound so cheerful," Dino said with a deadpan expression.

Hailey clicked her tongue impatiently. "Who do you take me for? Honestly, and you shouldn't worry so much. I said I had taken care of everything, didn't I?"

And almost as if to prove her point, Lanchia appeared. Soon after a small click announced that the box had been deactivated. Reborn nodded to the group to let them know it was okay to leave and the whole group ran over to join Tsuna.

Just as Hailey rounded the corner to return to her sister, five spear-like fingers stabbed through Alicia's gut. As they were pulled out the black haired twin fell to the ground.

Hailey was by her twin's side in an instant. She kicked the red head away from Alicia, knocking the girl into the wall. She then focused on stemming the blood flow and checking her sister's vitals.

Everyone was sure that she was dead.

"Fucking little shit!" Alicia coughed. She spat out blood and held her hand over her wound as she forced herself to her feet.

"Man you have some seriously strong dumb luck," Hailey sighed. "She didn't hit any organs or even your diaphragm! How do you even manage that?"

"Is she alright?" Tsuna called out weakly.

Alicia ignored him and glared at the re head. "What in the world did I do to you that warranted a metal-finger-knife-thing to stab me in the gut?"

"Alicia, knock it off!" Hailey called out. But Alicia wouldn't lie back down.

"The Varia cannot lose," Carmina spat as she pushed ruble off. Blood was pouring steadily from the head wound Hailey had caused. Danielle stood off to the side, watching in shock and fear.

"Can you _not_ see that the rest of your teammates have surrendered?" Alicia shouted incredulously as she waved at the other two who were holding up their hands to show that they had relented on their plans.

"Alicia calm down, your bleeding too much!" Hailey shushed.

Alicia pushed her sister away. "Fuck that! I'm going to beat the shit out of these two!"

"It's our duty as members of the Varia to follow our boss's orders and Xanxus-sama ordered that we get rid of all of you!" Carmina glared and readied her weapon again.

Hailey sighed impatiently. "Look, I know you have a thing for Xanxus and all, but you're not going to impress him by attacking one of us. So do us all a favor and stand down already."

A blush erupted across the red head's face. "I-I don't have a thing for boss!"

"Like I give a shit anyway!" Alicia shouted. Remember that elephant gun in chapter three? Well she pulled it out, from who knows where, and aimed it at the Varia's Star Guardian candidate.

"Alicia no!" Hailey dove and threw off her sister's aim just as she fired.

The wall next to Carmina was blown to bits. Danielle was finally snapped out of her horrified daze and ran over to her friend, holding her back and begging her to stop fighting.

"Move it Hailey!" Alicia shouted as the two fought for the gun. "I'm going to blast a hole in _her_ gut and see how _she_ likes it!"

"That's not the way to solve this!" Hailey shouted back. "We shouldn't be fighting each other! We're family!"

"I don't have to fight you if you would just get out of my way! You of all people should know how much it fucking hurts to get stabbed or shot!" Hailey managed to pull the gun away and toss it to the side, but Alicia moved onto hand-to-hand combat.

"That's why you need to just shut up and take care of that wound!"

"If you were in my position right now, you'd be trying to kill those two too!"

"Oh like I haven't taken you place before!" Hailey shouted sarcastically as she dodged a kick to her head.

"HA! You think you take my place all the time? I'm the one who's always protecting you!"

Now this royally pissed Hailey off. The strength and speed of her attacks increased drastically with her anger and frustration. "Are you kidding me? I'm always taking the blows for you! Remember that knife in Beijing? Remember the 13 bullet wounds in Paris! Remember that fucking poison! Not to mention in that back alley in Italy! Or Chicago! Or Seoul! I always get the worst ends of everything because of your brash behavior and hasty decisions!"

"Hey if we didn't act soon enough then some other people could have gotten hurt!"

"If you had waited for another three seconds for me to show up then we could have saved everyone without any of _us_ getting injured. But I _always_ take the fall! Even when we were kids and you beat up half the class for calling me names, I took the fall and said I did it because they were teasing me!"

"They called you an attention seeking whore! Was I supposed to just stay quiet and let them continue?"

"You didn't have to beat them half to death! You notice how I just ignored them! Mom lost all her trust in me because of that!"

"Tch! Yeah right! Dad knew it was me!"

"Yeah, but because you complained how mom gave me all the attention I made him promise not to tell her anything!"

"Well I never asked you to protect me for anything! _I'm_ the big sister after all!"

"Fuck that! We're _twins_! Why can't you fucking get that we're equal! Get off your high horse and _think_ for once!"

"You didn't complain when I slapped Jacob for pushing you!"

"I was unconscious you idiot!"

Simultaneously, Alicia pulled out a couple of pistols and Hailey pulled out her bow and an arrow. Both were panting as they pointed their armed weapons at each other. Alicia was still bleeding profusely and both were sporting a few new wounds. They glared at each other, daring the other to fire.

"Risa-san! Hailey-chan! Calm down!" Tsuna called out desperately. The two girls ignored him. He tried to get up so that he could split them up, but was completely depleted of energy from fighting Xanxus.

Yamamoto laughed nervously and gave it a try as well. "Now, now you two. You shouldn't fight, you're sisters after all."

But their words fell on deaf ears.

"What, too afraid to shoot?" Alicia taunted with a cock of her head.

"I'll have this arrow through your head before you even pulled that trigger," Hailey said calmly.

"You want to test that theory?" Alicia threatened and tightened her grip on her guns slightly.

Tsuna and the rest stared with batted breath. It looked like their two classmates were really about to kill each other.

"Do you seriously intend to hurt a member from our famiglia?" Hailey hissed.

Alicia narrowed her eyes. "Our famiglia? There's no one here but us and I'll only fire if you don't give up already."

Hailey had to use all her strength to not roll her eyes. "I told you to research the two extra guardians on your own."

"You told me everything I needed to know anyway! So why bother?"

"Danielle is a Dimenticato you moron! She's from sector three: America! She moved to sector one in Italy when her mission started! She's just like you! This time there are three of us! She even had the same plan as us! If I had given my half of the star ring to Carmina, then she would have just handed over her half of the moon ring! Dammit! This is why the Dimenticato aren't supposed to get too mixed up in other family's affairs!" Hailey yelled. She took a deep breath to calm down before continuing. "So let me ask you again. Do you intend to hurt a member of our famiglia and her friend?"

Movement from Danielle drew Alicia's eyes for a split second, but that was all Hailey needed to swing her bow around and hit the back of Alicia's head, effectively knocking the older twin out cold.

"Idiot," Hailey muttered as she withdrew and condensed her weapon. "I told you, you didn't think about the situation enough. Your rash behavior messed up a lot of stuff this time."

"Carmina," Danielle said quietly. She felt guilty for not telling her friend the truth about her.

But the red head held up a hand to cut her off. She smiled sadly. "Don't worry…I already knew…You were never mad when your parents died and you were always asking me not to get revenge for you."

"Then why…" Danielle's voice faltered.

Carmina blushed. "I just…I mean we-I owed Xanxus-sama so much so I vowed that I would follow and order no matter how hopeless the situation was."

"But if you knew I was a Dimenticato, then why did you have to hurt a member of my famiglia?" Danielle asked almost desperately.

"I observed that Alicia was probably one of the strongest and definitely the most stoic guardian. So I figured that if I was able to take her down, then the rest of the guardians would fall easier." Carmina was studying the ground like it was suddenly the most interesting thing in the world.

"It wouldn't have worked." Hailey said coldly. "It takes more than that scratch to take down a Dimenticato. Even if you had succeeded, it would have done more damage to your soul than to us." Hailey's eyes narrowed as she gazed at her sister. "Heaven is more unforgiving than most would like to believe."

No one knew what to say. The air was stifling with all the intensity of emotions and secrets that were hidden behind Hailey's words.

Thankfully the Cervello stepped forward again and announced that the winner of the Ring Conflict as well as the Sky match was Sawada Tsunayoshi and his guardians.

David also arrived and carried Alicia away from the school as fast as he could, just like he did with Hailey after their match.

"Is she alright?" Tsuna called out. Hailey glanced at him and nodded. The little energy that Tsuna had left drained out of him and after a quick glance at the amulet Kyoko and the others had made for him, he collapsed. Yamamoto and Gokudera were instantly by his side to make sure he was alright.

"You've done an extremely good job with that kid so far," Hailey said quietly to Reborn.

The young hitman smirked. "Of course. But Dame-Tsuna still has a ways to go."

Hailey smiled softly. "I suppose so." She sighed.

"I suppose if I asked you what you meant back there, you wouldn't answer clearly at this point in time?" Reborn asked with a quick glance at the girl.

"You guessed right. Perhaps I'll tell everyone a little bit of it later on down the road…Well call me if you need anything else." Hailey waved and walked away slowly.

* * *

><p><strong>So that is the end. This Carmina character has become a little more demented. It kinda makes me feel a little sorry for Xanxus with having to deal with her.<strong>

**Not to mention that the twins finally had their first really _big_ fight. I feel like Alicia was being a bit of an overprotective idiot, I mean she didn't even realize that Hailey had taken a lot of major blows for her during all their missions.**

**Well tell me what you think! I have a rather interesting and...sad twist planned for the future arc, but you're going to have to wait and see ;).**


	17. Chapter XVII

**Jeez another 10,000 word chapter! I didn't think I'd have another long one like this out again! Well I hope this chapter is to your liking. The main focus for chapter 17 was to not only get in the filler episodes, but to add in some pieces that would explain the story later on.**

**Special thanks to AccessBlade and ThePAradoxicalOtaku for reviewing almost or all of my chapters!**

**A triple berry sundae thanks to Accessblade who has helped me a great deal with my upcoming chapter!XD**

**Please remember to review at the end! I love to read them and they give me the motivation to type up the next chapter!**

* * *

><p>Chapter XVII<p>

_Hibari and Tsuna were having a private meeting, discussing the final details of the plan. It was late at night, but despite how tired he was, Tsuna knew he was going to have another sleepless night. He sighed and rested his head on his palms._

"_You're tired." It wasn't a question. There was no one who could deny how weary Tsuna had become since the death of his Moon Guardian._

_Tsuna chuckled a little. "I would feel a lot better if we still had the twins to look over all of this." Hibari tensed a little bit, but Tsuna ignored it. He knew that his cloud guardian wouldn't admit out loud that he sorely missed the Star of Vongola. "Hailey would be here for the entire planning process and Alicia would make the battle preparations. Then she would put herself out in the open to draw attention while her twin would come in from behind."_

"_There were powerful carnivores," Hibari stated firmly. He had long since acknowledged their abilities._

"_Though, I think that they were more interesting when they weren't in some fight."_

_Simultaneously the two men looked over at a picture situated on the edge of Tsuna's desk. The twins had been extremely adamant about taking pictures of them. The Vongola family members, who were close to them, all had this one picture. They had to make sure that they kept it a secret from the twins or risk having the picture confiscated from all of them, which was no easy feat. It had every close family member held within its frames. _

_A picture that they had snuck when the twins had taken a nap during a family outing…_

_Flashback_

"_Why are we here again?" Alicia grumbled as the large group ambled toward the park._

"_I have to agree with Alicia on this one," Hailey added. "We have a great deal of work that we have to take care of and I feel like I could get through a quarter of it in the time that we spend here today."_

_Tsuna smiled. "Because we hardly spend time as a family _and_ because it's an order from your boss."_

"_Besides," Yamamoto jumped in, "It's not healthy to work all the time. You should take a break from time to time as well!"_

_Alicia clicked her tongue while Hailey sighed, but the two continued along with the rest of the group._

_Everyone was attending the outing today. Bianchi, Fuuta, Giannini, Gokudera, Yamamoto, Ryohei, Kyoko, Hana, Haru, Chrome, Lambo, I-Pin, Reborn, Tsuna, Alicia, Hailey, Nana, Iemitsu, Basil, Colonello, and even Hibari._

_When they reached a desirable spot they sat down and spread out their picnic supply. They chatted while they ate and eventually, when the group finished, a few of them got up to play games and whatnot._

_Hailey and Alicia, who had gotten back from a mission a few hours ago, were feeling rather sleepy, so the two went over to a comfortable looking tree and settled down between the roots for a nap. Before long they were out, unaware of the rest of the world, at peace with their companions around them._

_The other members of the group took note of this and signaled to each other to gather around the twins. Kyoko readied the camera while the rest positioned themselves around the tree as quietly as they could. Hibari sat down next to Hailey, and almost as if she knew, her head lolled over to the side to rest on his should. Tsuna sat on the other side of the twins, next to Alicia who smiled in her sleep._

_After a small click, Kyoko got up to make sure that the picture came out alright before signaling to the others that it was alright to move. Everyone except Hibari stood up and continued with enjoying the picnic._

_But even when they decided that they should return to the base, the two girls had still not woken up. This put the group in a predicament because they were all fully aware of how dangerous the duo could be if you tried to wake them up._

_They finally decided that two of them should piggy back the twins home. So naturally Hibari carried Hailey, while Tsuna took care of Alicia._

_The group laughed and joked on their way back. They walked back chatting about things that had happened during the year that the others had missed, or reliving in another's embarrassment. However, a little ways down the mumblings from the twins caught their attention._

_Alicia laughed a little bit. "Ha, ha. Reborn the magician! Elder Rebo!..Look at the sparkly stars on Leon the hat…Make Loser Tsuna into Monster Tamer Tsuna… get the Mon-Mon candy! Ha, ha!" Alicia punched her hand forward limply in a cheer._

_Tsuna and the rest of the group, save Hibari and Reborn, sweat dropped._

_Hailey cackled in her sleep. "Go Blood-sucking Hibarin! Beat Monster Tamer Tsuna up! Ha, ha, ha, ha!" Hailey also punched the air in a sleepy cheer._

_The group sweat dropped again. Hibari hid his laughter behind a sniff._

"_They're having the same dream?" Tsuna asked with a chuckle._

"_Ah, Elder Rebo got taken down by Hibarin…." Hailey muttered in shock._

_Hibari smirked._

_Reborn on the other hand wasn't very happy. He had Leon transform into a ten ton hammer and would have hit Hailey, but was stopped by Tsuna._

"_No wait, Rebo is still alive… not the apocalypse yet…" Hailey muttered, with a slight amount of relief. Her slurred words satisfying the small hitman._

"_Ryohei is Frankenstein, but Elder Rebo says he's an automan! Ha, ha! Gokudera's a werecat! Look at the little kitty…" Alicia laughed like a drunk in a bar._

"_Why you!" Gokudera ground his teeth and made to charge at the sleeping girl, but was held back by Yamamoto._

"_Now, now. They're sleeping! They can't control their dreams."_

"_Yeah, octopus-head! Don't freak out!" Ryohei laughed a little and threw his arm around a smirking Hana._

"_Lambo the lightning bolt?" Alicia questioned, her face scrunched up. "Ugh, go away cloud sheep child. Next monster!"_

_Lambo chuckled a little bit. "My younger self was irritating."_

"_Yamamoto is a zombie! Look, look his brain fell out and is talking! Ha, ha. Its name is Takeshi." Hailey also laughed like a drunkard._

_Yamamoto laughed some more. "These two have some really interesting dreams."_

"_Mukuro is a monster tamer?" Alicia said with annoyance, even in her unconscious state, the illusionist continued to irritate her. "Go Tsuna! Take him down…Pretty Chrome is a mummy, how cute…"_

_Chrome blushed._

_Alicia laughed again. "Ken is a weredog and Kakipi is a Golem! Oh look, Mukuro has a pineapple wand! Funny~…Ah! He gave up! Funnier~!"_

"_Perhaps it's a good thing that Mukuro can't be with us," Tsuna said sarcastically._

"_Hibari is a vampire, ha, ha. Go suck Loser Tsuna to death!" Hailey mumbled and tightened her grip around Hibari. "Chibi Hibari is so cute."_

_Tsuna looked over at his Moon and Star guardian with a deadpan expression. Just what were these two dreaming of?_

"_Go cute little chibi hyper dying will mode Tsuna!" Alicia cheered. "Ah, Tsuna ate Takeshi's hand and became a zombie…ah, Tsuna's brain wins! Yay Tsuna!"_

_Both males had to concentrate to keep their blushes from appearing in front of everyone else._

_The two's sleep talk faded away and were silent for the rest of the trip back home._

_End Flashback_

_The two males resurfaced from their memories and looked up at each other._

_Tsuna smiled wistfully. "You're lucky. You'll get to see Hailey again…I wish I could see Alicia one last time…"_

_Hibari stayed silent, knowing that this was an impossible wish. No matter how emotionless he may seem to others, he did feel a small amount of sympathy for the man. Both of them felt the pain of having their beloved ripped out of their lives before they had a chance to be together._

_Fate was so cruel._

* * *

><p>Alicia woke up in the early hours of the morning lying on her bed.<p>

"You've become even more irritating in this world you know."

Alicia jolted a little and turned her head to the side quickly to see Hailey sitting on a chair next to her bed, reading a book. But she didn't look up from her novel, nor turn her chair to face her sister's bed. Hailey just continued to read as she spoke to her sister.

"When I was sick from that virus, you said that you were sorry for not protecting me. But I told you at that time as well, that we were twins. We protect each other." Hailey paused for a little bit so that she could turn the page. "Yet you still seem belligerent about being the older sister figure."

Alicia frowned and opened her mouth the retort, but Hailey cut her off calmly.

"I think I should tell you now, since you're probably in denial about it, but we can't die at the same time in this world. Our souls are _too_ connected, so we have to live and die separately. I'll most likely die long before you, so don't get all high and mighty and assume that I need protection. We can't stop heaven and our fate in this world."

Alicia closed her mouth and turned away, the crease in her brow deepening.

Hailey finally snapped her book shut and looked down at her sister. "I don't like arguing with you. It always leaves a bad taste in my mouth. And this time it was even worse because I had to remember our past lives. Now I'm going to make breakfast for the kids then get ready for that party over at Yamamoto's place. You should get ready as well." Hailey stood up and left the room without another word.

* * *

><p>The twins walked together to the Yamamoto's sushi house in a rather tense silence. Hailey didn't smile the entire time and Alicia appeared to be sulking the whole way.<p>

"Hailey, wait." Alicia placed a hand on her twin's shoulder to keep her from going inside the Japanese sushi house.

Hailey paused and stared at her sister with a blank face.

Alicia fidgeted a little before continuing. "Look, I apologize for my behavior last night. I was just really mad because of the sudden and uncalled for, attack. I wasn't thinking straight and I said a lot of things that I shouldn't have."

Hailey sighed exasperatedly. "Since you were yelling everything that came off the top of your head that means that you were speaking from the heart. I don't want a guardian, I want a sister. And don't get so pissy whenever you get hurt. Our sun flames can take care of any wound in a mere second."

Alicia grimaced. "I know…I really am sorry."

"Yeah, yeah." Hailey gave her sister a light chop to the head. "Now let's go inside. Tsuna should already be inside."

"Ah! Hailey-chan and Risa-chan are finally here!" Kyoko said excitedly.

"Congratulation on winning the sumo tournament with Tsuna-san and the rest!" Haru cheered.

Hailey smiled softly.

It was then that Alicia noticed that her sister seemed a little more tired than normal. She thought back to the conversation they had when she had woken up that morning. Did Hailey know something about their appointment day that she didn't?

The twins walked over to Dino and Tsuna who were conversing.

"About the ninth," Dino's eyes softened. "His life isn't in danger."

"Really!" Tsuna said happily. His eyes softened with relief. "I see. Thank goodness."

Dino smiled wider. "It was thanks to Alicia's quick first aid. Some of my subordinates said they noticed her patching him up while no one was looking."

Tsuna blinked, surprised. "Huh? Risa-san did-"

"Nothing. I did nothing at all," Alicia said in a slightly stiff tone as she stopped by the boys.

Dino laughed. "Really now?" He drawled skeptically.

Alicia ignored him. "So how are you holding up?" She asked Tsuna.

"My body hurts all over!" He complained, but then smiled as he turned back to them. "What about you two? You got stabbed yesterday and Hailey hit you pretty hard…"

Alicia chuckled a little and shrugged. "I could do without the throbbing headache, but other than that I'm fine."

Alicia noticed that Hailey was no longer by her side and walked away as Reborn and Dino continued with teasing Tsuna about accepting the position of tenth generation Vongola boss. Just in time too, because Gokudera joined in as well.

She saw her sister sitting at the counter, snacking on sushi and conversing with Bianchi and Nana. Alicia went over and joined her sister.

The two watched as Kyoko and Haru gave Tsuna the champion belt. Then Bianchi interrupting Tsuna's and Kyoko's obliviously mushy conversation and tried to force feed Tsuna some of her poison cooking. They were considering about taking their leave soon when Kyoko and Haru called for everyone's attention again.

"Hey Lanchia and Basil are still here," Alicia whispered to her sister. "Aren't they supposed to have snuck out by now?" Hailey shrugged.

"Today we are also celebrating something else!" Haru said joyously.

Kyoko nodded. "Un! Today is Hailey-chan's and Risa-chan's birthday!"

Alicia who had a rather bored look before, suddenly changed into dread and shock.

Hailey's smile turned completely forced. "How did you come across that piece of information, may I ask?"

"Your uncle told us!" Haru smiled and pulled out a cake with Kyoko.

Alicia scowled. "I'm killing David when we get back."

Hailey laughed nervously as she took a slice. "So…how old are we now?"

"15!" Kyoko and Haru said together.

Hailey dropped the fork she was holding. Reborn and Tsuna caught the short instant of shock and fear that flashed across Hailey's eyes.

If it was even possible, her smile became even more forced. "Wow…15 already. That means it's our ten year anniversary with the Dimenticato as well. We should go call Ali and Zach, don't you think Alicia?"

"Uh, yeah." Alicia frowned. Hailey sounded strained and uncomfortable. "Now that I think about it, Ali's appointment day is coming up pretty soon."

"Appointment day?" Tsuna asked, speaking unintentionally for everyone.

"It's nothing," Hailey replied quickly. "A story for another time."

The two girls left the sushi shop quickly after thanking Yamamoto's father and everyone else who had helped with the party.

"I'm going to go deliver this to Hibari," Hailey said after walking a distance from the sushi shop. She held up a take-out box.

Alicia nodded. "Want me to go with?"

"No," Hailey sighed. "I also want to clear my head a little."

"Roger that," Alicia joked with a salute, then headed off back to the apartment.

Hailey watched her sister's back till she rounded a corner and completely disappeared. Even then Hailey continued to stay where she was and just stared at the spot her sister had vanished.

'_Wow… The story has progressed so quickly… It's already the end of the Varia arc and moving into the Future arc… I wonder if the filler episodes will take place, or will it follow the manga and go straight into the future part_.' Hailey sighed and finally started walking toward the school.

As she entered through the main school gates Hibird landed on her shoulder. Hailey nuzzled the small yellow puffball and stroked it with a couple of fingers. The bird chirped and tugged on her loose strands of hair. Hailey chuckled a little and pulled out a bag of birdseeds that she kept handy in case of such an occasion. Since she spent a lot of time on the roof when Hibari did, the small bird had taken to begging for food from her.

Hailey stopped in front of the building and looked up. "Hey little fella," she said softly. "Can you get that blood thirsty master of yours to open the window?"

Hibird chirped and seemed to nod before it took off into the air and flew up the reception office's window. "Hibari! Hibari!" The bird called in its squeaky voice. Hibird tapped on the window a few times.

Hailey waited for the window to be fully opened before she tossed the box of sushi up to the prefect. And like he had been expecting it, Hibari caught the box. He opened the box before he glanced down. Hailey smiled and waved up at the boy, then headed back out of the school grounds.

Perhaps it was a good thing that the reception room was so high up. After all, if he was any closer Hibari was sure that Hailey would have been able to see the almost indistinguishable blush. It was very irritating. Why on earth would he feel the need to blush because of an omnivore like her? Absolutely ridiculous! Hibari decided to leave the school grounds for a short while so that he could go bite a few herbivores to death to relieve some of his frustration…After eating the sushi first of course. It would be bad to waste food.

* * *

><p>Lanchia had given him his boss's ring and Basil had handed him something as well. Tsuna wasn't sure what to say or how to thank them and he was never really good at good-byes. But the sound of running footsteps called their attention.<p>

"Hey! Stop!" Lambo shouted as he charged toward the four males. "Lambo-san is going on a picnic too!"

"Lambo! Hey! Stop!" Tsuna had to tackle the small cow child to catch him and force him to stop chasing the other two.

"Picnic!" Lambo whined.

"It's not a picnic," Tsuna said exasperatedly as he stood up. He held on tightly as Lambo squirmed and fought, trying to explain the situation. "The two of them are going home to Italy."

Lambo stopped struggling. "Italy?"

"Well then…" Basil trailed off.

Tsuna raised a hand to wave. "Be careful."

"Bye-bye." Lambo waved as well.

Lanchia started walking away and with one last wave, Basil left as well.

"Jeez, Lambo," Tsuna said wearily, still holding the kid.

"He really is annoying," Reborn added. "By the way, what did Basil give you?"

"Eh? Not sure." Tsuna looked down at the gift Basil had given him to see a bottle of pills. "Dying will pills!" Tsuna said with dread. "There…There's no use in giving me this!"

"Not true," Reborn countered. "You will be constantly targeted from here on out."

"Don't…Don't joke around," Tsuna stuttered in horror of the thought.

"Tsuna!" Lambo having enough of being ignored whacked Tsuna with his balloon toy. The young boy jumped up and down on Tsuna's stomach. "Lambo-san's new ultimate attack! Yo-yo stomp!"

"Like I said, annoying." Reborn held out his hand and had Leon transform into Lanchia's iron ball weapon. "Violent Snake Raging Domination!" Reborn said triumphantly as he knocked Lambo a few feet away, effectively saving Tsuna though he would never admit it.

"Gotta…stay…calm…" Lambo muttered as he looked up with big teary eyes. But he burst our crying anyways.

"What are you doing Reborn!" Tsuna demanded as he rushed to the younger boy's side.

"My patience has reached its limit," Reborn replied, unfazed.

"But Lambo just got out of the hospital!" Tsuna continued to reprimand.

"Stupid Reborn! You frowny face!" Lambo cried as he pulled out the ten year bazooka.

Reborn's eyebrow twitched almost imperceptibly.

"Ten year bazooka!" Tsuna shouted. "Wait a minute Lambo!"

Reborn ignored his student as well as the cow brat and picked up a loose piece of concrete. "Just die!" Reborn exclaimed as he hurled the piece of the street at Lambo at full force.

"Gup-yaa!" Lambo shouted as the rock collided with his face and threw off his aim.

The bazooka fired and the small spiked ball whizzed through the air. There was a small explosion and a puff of pink smoke that enveloped the space behind Tsuna and Reborn. But when the smoke cleared, no one was around.

Tsuna sighed in relief and scolded Lambo a little before heading back home with the younger boy in tow.

But Reborn stayed where he was, frowning a little. He could have sword he felt and heard someone walking up behind him right before the bazooka went off. But if no one appeared when the bazooka had went off then that means… He would definitely have to go an investigate.

* * *

><p>"Man," Hailey said with a sigh. "I really have no luck, do I?"<p>

Just a few seconds ago Hailey had been walking absentmindedly down the street, not really paying attention to where she was going. Before she rounded another corner she heard the familiar shouts of Lambo and Tsuna.

Right after stepping out from behind the wall three things happened. Firstly Hailey noticed a shadow watching her from behind a street pole across from her. Secondly she saw the 10 year bazooka's ammunition flying toward her, but for some reason her body wasn't responding to the 'move out of the way dammit' signals coming from her brain. Thirdly she focused all her strength into her thumb and hit the send button on her phone before she felt a sharp sting on her arm and her world was engulfed in pink smoke. Now she was flying through the time vortex heading for a most undesirable future.

Hailey sighed again and peered down at her phone. It made her feel better when she saw the small green checkmark indicating that her message had been successfully sent.

While she was walking, trying to clear her head a little bit, she suddenly had this sense of foreboding and felt like fate was going to sucker punch her. So she had taken out her phone and typed up the message:

_Hey there David. I really wanted to say thank you for everything. I have the feeling that I'm not going to make it back home today after all. There's a video I made for the kids, just in case, can you show it to them? Also, I'm sorry to burden you even more, but could you tell them that I won't be coming back. Alicia will disappear for a few days as well, but while she's still there please tell her that I accepted a solo mission. Tell her that there was information about an unexpected change in our mission and I went to investigate. Tell Ali and Zach I said thank you and good-bye to them too._

_Thank you so much for all your patience and kindness toward me. It really helped me through this trial. I hope to see you and everyone again someday. _

_Good-bye._

Hailey heaved another sigh and put her phone away. She had no idea where she would be landing, so if she needed to fight, then she would need her hands to be free.

Hailey couldn't help but squeeze her eyes shut when she felt the end of her trip nearing. Something told her that it would be wise to cover her head and be prepared to grab a hold of something when she appeared on the other side.

Fate seemed to have it in for Hailey today because, just as her gut had warned her moments ago, the girl was sent flying through a bunch of branches that cut and snagged her clothing and hair. Then Hailey went tumbling down a rather steep hill. Hailey clawed at the grass and weeds, trying to brake her fall, but she continued to tumble till her back collided roughly with a large tree stump.

"Son of a-!" Hailey hissed. Sensing no danger or anybody nearby, she decided to just lay there for a moment till her pain subsided a little. "Oh, for Pete sake!" She muttered irritatedly as she finally sat up. "Who in the hell thought it would be a good idea to leave my remains there of all places!"

Poor Hailey, her future self has a rather crude sense of humor. And to think, that TYL Hailey thought it would be funny to mess with her younger self!

"Man! When Tsuna and the rest went through the ten year bazooka, they just switched places with their future self! So why on earth does it feel like _I_ was shot out of a cannon?" Hailey grumbled and complained to the air. She grumbled incoherently some more as she stood up and brushed herself off. On the ground she noticed a small bag and a belt with a few boxes. Figuring that they were probably hers, and that she would need them later, Hailey picked them up and stored them in her backpack-purse for the time being. "Now let's see… From the looks of it I should go north. Then I should be able to find the roadway that leads to one of the secret entrances."

The white panther laced her fingers behind her head and set off. A short while later, as Hailey had predicted, she arrived at a lonely and rarely used public roadway. A ways down, nearing the outskirts of Namimori, Hailey saw a sleek black car parked next to the curb. As she approached the vehicle all four doors opened but only three people started climbing out right away. The fourth person stuck their legs out but paused as if reaching for something in the car that they almost forgot to take with them. None of them were aware of the approaching girl, though if they did Hailey would have been extremely surprised since she was hiding her presence.

She allowed herself a soft smile as she recognized a couple of the males; she figured the driver must have been a hired hand. "Finally! Someone I know!" She said loud enough for the men to hear.

They jumped and whirled around, preparing to attack, when they saw who it was drawing up to them and froze. Hailey smirked and started to wave when the last male finally climbed out of the car. Hailey's eyes widened a fraction of an inch and she too became immobilized. The man took notice of Hailey as well and stared.

Hailey was the first to regain full use of her brain. She face palmed hard. "Oh for the love of-!"

She must have seriously pissed off some deity in a past life because fate was really screwing with her now.

* * *

><p>"What?" Alicia said blankly for the umpteenth time since she got home.<p>

"Hailey went on a solo mission and won't be back for an undetermined amount of time," David repeated slowly and emphasizing each syllable. He had long since learned to be patient with the types like Alicia, and now was not the time to change.

"Why?"

"She called me and said that she found something that was messing with your trial, so she was going off to take care of it right away. She also said to tell you not to wait up for her and if you could, could you please record the test of courage, parent participation day, Bianchi's wedding, the three criminal brother, Shoichi and Lambo's interaction, as well as beat the shit out of those dojo sign stealing guys, make sure Nezu finally gets his ass fired, and make sure to get Nana's party. She also asked if you could find out how each of your charges got sent to the future. Be sure to upload everything to Hailey's and your personal storage space in the Dimenticato computer mainframe."

There was a long pause. "What?"

David whistled and chuckled a little awkwardly. "Wow. I never knew my patience could be tested to such an extent. But I'm sure you understand what I've been saying for the past three hours. So why must you continue to ask again?"

"Why didn't Hailey call me so that I could come with?"

"Probably because she needed to get it taken care of right away. Also," David grimaced, "she might still be a little mad at you. This will be a good time for the two of you to get some alone time and figure yourselves out."

Alicia looked down disheartened. But she sighed and looked back up with new determination. "Then I won't let Hailey down! I'll make sure to capture every important detail and take care of our charge in her place!"

David smiled. "Good, then I'm going to go make dinner for the kids."

Alicia nodded before marching off to her room.

David watched the darker haired twin walk away to her room. "Good luck Hailey…Alicia… You're going to need it," David murmured quietly. Then he turned and left for the children's bedroom so that he could prepare dinner for them.

The promise he made to Hailey started today, so he was going to see it through till the end. He and Zach would probably never admit it to anyone but each other, but they had developed a soft spot for Hailey and Alicia. And they hadn't developed a relationship with anyone for the 500 years that they had lived in that world, so they would definitely be sad when those two had to go. He really wished that he could have said a better farewell to Hailey at the very least.

* * *

><p>"Hey there Risa!" Yamamoto said with a smile and wave.<p>

Alicia walked up to the group with her hands stuffed into her pockets, shrugging a little. "Yo."

"Where's Hailey? I told her to come as well," Reborn said, popping up out of nowhere.

"No can do. She's on a solo mission and won't be coming back for a while." In all honesty, Alicia wouldn't even be here if it wasn't for Hailey's request. It was cold and all Alicia wanted to do was curl up on her sofa with a hot cup of coffee and perhaps a nice book. She dug her chin further into her scarf at the thought of the nice warm room.

"So which team do you want to join?" Kyoko asked excitedly.

"None," Alicia said bluntly. She reluctantly pulled a gloved hand out of her pocket and held up a camcorder. "I'm here to video tape everything so that Hailey can watch later."

Haru pouted a little bit. "Hmmm, Haru still thinks it would be more fun if you joined us with trying to scare Tsuna-san!" On the other hand, this also meant that Alicia wouldn't be paired with Tsuna, so that made her a little happy.

'_Why on earth does this girl speak in third person randomly_,' Alicia thought sarcastically and with slight impatience. "No dice," She said aloud and jumped up into a nearby tree, effectively disappearing from sight.

"Hahi!" Haru and Kyoko gasped. "Risa-san is just like a ninja."

The girl sweat dropped and there was a slight thud when Alicia whapped her head against the tree trunk.

"Risa-chan, are you alright!" Kyoko called up in concern, completely misinterpreting the noise.

"Fine, just peachy," Alicia grunted.

Though Kyoko probably wanted to see Alicia face to face to confirm that her schoolmate was alright, they had to finish putting on their costumes and hide.

Alicia shifted her position and plotted out a course through the trees where she could watch Tsuna without being noticed.

'_How on earth can every surrounding neighborhood just _ignore_ all this racket?_' Alicia thought as she filmed Tsuna's fear stricken shrieks that were filling the night air. She decided to pull Tsuna to safety when Romeo's ghost appeared, but left the main attack to Bianchi. The rest of the even was uneventful and ended without a hitch.

Nah! That would be just _too_ easy! And if fate was going to mess around with Hailey it was only fitting that it should screw with her twin as well right. That or Reborn really liked tripping Alicia.

For just as the girl was exciting the graveyard a rope was pulled up between the gate posts and caused Alicia to trip unceremoniously.

"Son of a flubber muffin!" Alicia yelled into the ground. Her head snapped around when she heard a chuckle. "Reborn!" Alicia shouted furiously.

Reborn smirked. "You're getting soft. You should have paid more attention to your surroundings."

Alicia growled and muttered incoherent threats as she pushed herself into a sitting position. But when she tried to get back to her feet a sharp pain in her ankle announced itself and Alicia fell back onto her rear. She pressed on her ankle and hissed in pain. "Damn it, you twisted my ankle!" Alicia muttered angrily.

But Reborn just smirked again.

Alicia was about to heal her ankle, she didn't care if Reborn saw her flames and their abilities, but had to stop as the other teenagers jogged up.

"Ah! Risa-san! You were here too?" Tsuna panted. Exhausted from all the running away he had to do that night. He had completely missed Alicia saving him, since Bianchi had drawn his attention.

"Actually I was just leaving," Alicia grumbled. She tried to get to her feet but winced as soon as she started applying pressure to her injured ankle.

"If you walk on that ankle you can make it worse," Reborn stated for all to hear.

"Oh no! Risa-chan, are you alright?" Kyoko demanded immediately.

"Some days you really make me wish I could shoot you," Alicia muttered so that Reborn was the only one who heard her. "I'll be fine," she assured the rest.

Reborn's smirk grew wider. "I'd like to see you try."

"I wish I would have the chance," Alicia murmured, this time more to herself than anyone else. But Reborn's smirked tugged at his lips even more indicating that he caught Alicia's words.

"Do you want us to help you home?" Yamamoto offered.

"Pass." Alicia held up a hand. "I'll call for a ride home."

"Then we can wait here with you," Yamamoto insisted.

Alicia crossed her arms in an X. "Pass again. I've had enough of loud noises for the night. You guys just go home and I'll probably have to see you some other day anyways." But Reborn couldn't have all the fun, so fate made her sneeze.

Reborn's eyes glinted as he thought up a plan to cause more strife in Tsuna's and Alicia's lives. "Dame-Tsuna! You take Alicia home before she catches a cold."

"Eh!" Alicia and Tsuna said simultaneously.

"Don't wanna," Alicia rejected and pouted in a childish manner.

Tsuna sweat dropped.

But Reborn ignored the two and turned to the rest of the group. "Everyone else should go home. Tsuna will make sure Alicia makes it home safely."

"That's good. Good job Tsuna-kun!" Kyoko said with relief. She waved and left.

To Alicia's surprise, Haru frowned, possibly glared, at her before saying a cheery good-bye to Tsuna and walking away with Kyoko. However since the brunette girl didn't say anything, Alicia couldn't be sure why the strange girl was mad at her.

"I must _extremely_ get a good night's rest! Have an _extremely_ good night Sawada!" Ryohei said loudly. "Wait Kyoko! I must extremely walk you home safely!" The boxer shouted as he jogged after his sister.

"As Juudaime's right hand man I will not leave this gun-freak alone with Juudaime!" Gokudera announced.

Yamamoto laughed. "Come on now Gokudera, I'm sure they'll be fine."

"No way, baseball-nut! I will protect Juudaime from gun-freak and any other threat out there!" Gokudera protested.

"G-Gokudera-kun, it's alright," Tsuna assured hesitantly.

Gokudera halted in his actions. "If Juudaime says so." The silverette ground his teeth before unwillingly saying the next part. "Then I'll take my leave. Good night Juudaime, Reborn-san."

Yamamoto laughed again. "I'll be going now too. Night Tsuna!"

The two boys turned and left after Tsuna's quick farewell.

"Problem!" Alicia interjected. "You can't carry me and the cow brat, so why don't you four go home and I'll take care of myself, ne?"

"Oh, I guess you're right," Tsuna said, gazing down at the sleeping calf boy.

"That's right, and if you hadn't noticed already, I am completely capable of taking care of myself."

"Nonsense!" Reborn interrupted. "You're injured and Dame-Tsuna hasn't done enough training."

"That doesn't solve the sleeping Lambo problem," Alicia pointed out.

Reborn suddenly jumped up and kicked Lambo, hard. The small boy flew up and out of sight. "What problem?" Reborn asked innocently.

Tsuna and Alicia stared at the small hitman with deadpan expressions.

Tsuna sighed and replied to his tutor in a resigned fashion. "Alright, alright. I'll take her home."

"Pass," Alicia said once again.

Reborn's eyes glinted dangerously. "We can always do this my way."

Alicia shivered a little bit. Even though she _really_ didn't want anyone else's help, she also knew that even she and Hailey weren't stronger than Reborn individually.

"Your answer?" Reborn pressed.

Alicia huffed. "Fine," she growled unwillingly. She hopped onto Tsuna's back and allowed him to give her a piggy back home, Reborn also hitching a ride on Tsuna's shoulder.

For the most part there was an awkward silence. Well, awkward for Tsuna, irritated for Alicia, and mischievous for Reborn.

"So where is Hailey really?" Reborn asked after a little while.

"Like I said, Hailey is on a solo mission. She didn't tell David anything specific," Alicia said irritatedly.

Reborn studied the girl a little bit before finally deciding that she was telling what she felt to be the truth. But he didn't honestly believe that Hailey would just take off without her sister by choice, which meant that she was most likely forced to go. But where and for what reason?

* * *

><p>Alicia watched with a small amount of amusement as the teacher tried to impress the line of parents watching at the back of the class, and how students were trying to avoid attention.<p>

The older twin took a bit a pleasure in watching Tsuna quiver at the thought of Reborn's retribution of answering a question wrong. However the moment Reborn took over the class, she walked out. There was no way she was going to risk getting pulled onto an electric chair. It didn't matter if she would be able to answer any problem because there was no doubt in her mind that Reborn would try and electrocute her anyways.

* * *

><p>For Bianchi's wedding, Alicia stationed cameras all over the building; paid her respects to the poison scorpion for herself and Hailey (mostly for the latter since she couldn't be there); and then waited out the whole thing with Reborn.<p>

No matter how much Reborn irritated her, there was no way she was going to be anywhere near Bianchi and her poison touch when the lady hitman discovered that she had been tricked.

* * *

><p>Alicia yawned as she stepped out of the apartment building. '<em>Now let's see. Today was the day those three criminal brothers came and tried to steal, swindle, and extort from Nana. Well I guess for the pickpocket guy it'll be a second go.<em>'

The sudden impulse to duck caused Alicia's stomach to meet the ground at a very painful speed. "What in the world?" She looked up and saw a small smoking hole where her head had been 15 seconds ago.

"Hm. You reacted better than I had expected."

Alicia looked around to see Reborn standing next to her. She could feel a couple of veins popping. "_Why_ are you trying to kill me again? And what do you mean better? Hailey and I are even, and I know you acknowledge _her_ abilities."

Reborn smirked. "That's because I like her more than you."

Alicia rolled her eyes and pushed herself into a sitting position. "So what do you want?"

There was a mischievous glint in the young looking hitman's eyes. In a blink of an eye, Alicia found her arms bound to her sides.

"What the-!" She struggled a little before deciding that just trying to break the ropes would be a waste of energy.

"You're going to help us escort mama at the market today." Reborn started tugging Alicia toward Tsuna's house.

Alicia sighed, annoyed. She had planned to watch them from a nearby café. "Can't you guys handle it without me? I really feel like my presence won't add anything."

"Well you could always just tell me who the pickpocket who stole mama's wallet is."

"Information gathering is more of Hailey's things." Alicia finally wriggled off the bindings. "I'm coming, I'm coming," she replied to Reborn's unspoken threat if she made a run for it.

* * *

><p>"Risa-san!" Tsuna exclaimed as they approached the house.<p>

"Ara? Good morning Risa-chan!" Nana greeted cheerfully.

Alicia bowed respectfully. "Good morning Sawada-san."

Nana smiled. "So polite! But there's no need to be so formal! Call me Nana!"

Alicia allowed herself a small smile. "I'll try Nana-san."

Tsuna's mother's smile brightened. "What brings you here today?"

"Mama," Reborn hopped up onto Tsuna's shoulder. "Alicia offered to help escort you safely and help with the shopping."

It took more strength than Alicia had anticipated to keep any of the muscles in her face from twitching. "Uh, yeah. Reborn told me about what happened yesterday and I offered to lend my…self-defense abilities so that you could shop with ease," Alicia said hesitantly.

Nana raised a hand to her face and tilted her head to the same side. "Aah~! Risa-chan is so kind."

Alicia laughed nervously while Tsuna bore a deadpan look. He was definitely thinking along the lines of Reborn forcing Alicia to go so that he could have her beat the crap out of whoever stole his mother's wallet.

"Well then let's go!" Nana said happily, oblivious to Alicia's discomfort and her son's obvious dread.

The group chattered nonsense and despite their mission oriented reasons for going, they seemed cheerful for the most part. At least, that's what Alicia thought till they reached the outskirts of the shopping districts. Then all of them, except the two Sawada's and Alicia, released a threatening black aura that held death and despair for anyone foolish enough to step near or within their boundaries.

'_I'm not a part of this. I'm not a part of this. Even though I'm walking somewhat near them, I'm not a part of it._' Alicia chanted in her head. A small café caught her attention and with a quick and furtive glance at Reborn, who was vying for Nana's attention so that he could get some coffee, she snuck off to get herself something.

A few moments later she came out of the café carrying a cup of milk tea and hot green tea. She spotted Tsuna at Haru's mercy so she decided to intervene. "Hey Tsuna, here." She shoved the cup of green tea into his hands.

"Ah! Risa-san! You didn't have to!" Tsuna argued incoherently, probably from his embarrassment.

"It's no problem, really. Hailey and I have money to spare. Besides you didn't ask your mom for anything since she was buying stuff for all the others right." Alicia ruffled the boy's hair and sipped on her straw. Tsuna blushed and mumbled something unintelligible.

"Hello Risa-chan," Kyoko said with a smile.

Alicia was still sipping her drink so she just waved back.

"What are _you_ doing here?" Haru asked rather stiffly, now out of her new Namahage costume.

Alicia glanced at the girl before retuning her gaze to her nearly empty drink. "Reborn asked me to help with Nana-san's shopping today."

"Tsuna-san I can get you something!" Haru said eagerly, changing topics since she wasn't about to disagree with anything Reborn had to say.

"No, no! That's okay!" Tsuna held up his hands, almost like in defense to emphasize his words.

Though Haru looked disappointed, but their conversation was put on hold when they heard a scream. The group turned around to see a man falling to his butt in front of Bianchi who had a python hanging over her shoulders.

Alicia spotted another café with a promotion going on, so saw fit to leave the group to their own devices while she went to get herself something to snack on.

However her meal got cut short when the group decided to go home and Reborn forced her to go with them. While Nana went out to help an unknown friend's of hers, the rest did whatever. Alicia took this time to go take a nap on Tsuna's couch. She'd wake up later when the Ichiro the swindler came by she decided.

* * *

><p>Alicia sighed. "Really Tsuna, you just had to go and wind up in jail with <em>these<em> three losers?" She asked cynically. Ichiro of the 'Three Criminal Brothers' opened his mouth to say something, but quickly snapped it shut when Alicia raised an eyebrow at him threateningly.

"Please save me," Tsuna sobbed, holding onto a couple of the cell bars.

Alicia sighed again, but waved to the officer and, to Tsuna's horror, bullied the police man and his commanding officer into releasing Tsuna without charging bail. When he was released Alicia handed him a new set of cloths to change into. He thanked her nervously and pulled them on, but when he thought they were going to leave Alicia surprised him by walking back over to the cell.

"Hmmm, what would Hailey do in this situation?" Alicia hummed with an evil grin. "Ah! I know. Saburo the Pickpocket, Jiro the Extortionist, and Ichiro the Swindler…I'll pay all of your bail if you beat me in a game. I'll even give you a reward of 10,000 yen."

The three men's eyes gleamed.

"What is this game young lady?" Ichiro asked kindly.

Alicia smirked. "If Saburo can steal this watch from my coat pocket, then you win. Fair enough?"

"What happens if we lose?" Jiro asked, though he seemed confident in his brother's thieving ability.

Alicia smiled brightly, but Tsuna shivered from fear. Alicia smiling like that could definitely mean nothing good would happen to those three.

"Then I'll give the evidence for every single crime you've committed to these officers." Alicia held up a stack of papers containing pictures of them in action and all the objects as well as the amount of money stolen from each person in detail. "I'm sure there's enough here to make you rot in jail for the rest of your lives."

The three gulped anxiously. When they had run in and turned themselves in to the police it was only meant to be a short while so that they could get away from that crazy family, but this was definitely worse.

"Then perhaps we won't be playing your game after all," Saburo said fearfully.

"Now that wouldn't be any fun. Then I'll just go turn in half of these papers." Alicia turned slightly to fake leaving, but paused when the men yelled out. "Oh? Does that mean you want to play?"

Saburo puffed out his chest and nodded. "Float like a butterfly and sting like a bee. I won't let my prey escape me!"

"That's right! You go little bro!" Jiro cheered.

Ichiro pushed up his glasses and smirked. "Why don't we add to the ante? If we win you pay each of us 10,000 yen."

Tsuna nearly shrieked from the amount. That was so much money! There was no way Alicia was going to be willing to pay that.

Alicia shook her head to Tsuna's relief. "How about one million yen each?"

Tsuna fell to the ground. Was she serious?

The three brothers looked rather stunned, but gathered their senses and agreed eagerly.

Alicia crossed her hands behind her back and stood in front of the bars. "At the count of three. One…Two…Three!"

There was a flash of movement, then a cry of joy. "Ha!" Saburo held up a watch. His brothers began to cheer, but then froze when the girl giggled.

"I would take a closer look at that if I were you." Alicia reached into her pocket and pulled out the watch she had shown them earlier. She also pulled her other hand from behind her and held up a pile of clothes.

The men looked down to see Saburo standing in his boxers. They also noticed that the watch he was holding was in fact Ichiro's.

Alicia walked away with Tsuna in tow to leave them in their despair, making sure to hand the evidence over to the police officers before she left.

"Come on, I'll go buy you something to eat since you probably missed dinner." Alicia waved for Tsuna to follow her.

"That's okay! That's okay!" Tsuna shouted and waved his hands in front of him.

Alicia looked back at the boy and rolled her eyes. "Come on, 'cause I'm pretty sure Reborn was planning to have you spend the night in that cell. This way if you come back a little later he won't be as…unpleasant."

Tsuna shuddered at the thought of what Reborn would do if he didn't get his way and decided to follow Alicia after all. And dinner was actually more pleasant than Tsuna had expected. She told him some stories about Hailey and herself when they were younger, as well as some of the missions they went on, and Hailey's antics. Alicia was pretty sarcastic, but he could tell that she was really caring. On the way back they joked about some of the things at school, Yamamoto's and Gokudera's one sided arguments, Gokudera's puppy dog behavior toward Tsuna, Ryohei's actions, Haru's antics, and other side tidbits.

"Oh my, what a cute couple," an old lady said to them kindly as they were walking by.

Tsuna nearly fell over. '_Couple!_' He started to blush madly and denied the old lay's words.

"Oh? Are you not on a date?" The elderly lady asked kindly.

'_Damn right, we're not!_' Alicia yelled in her inner mind. '_Think Alicia, think! What would Hailey do in this sort of situation?_' Alicia imagined a Hailey smiling dangerously and pulling out a gun, shooting the elderly woman full of lead. She sweat dropped a little. '_Honestly Hailey, why do have to be a completely evil psychopath at the worst times? Fine then, what would Hailey _not_ do?_'

Alicia hid her emotions behind a kindly smile and bowed. "That's very kind of you, but Tsuna is just a friend of mine. I'm afraid I'm not really interested in any relationships like that at this time." Tsuna couldn't tell, but it was taking every fiber of Alicia's being not to yell and rant, and basically blow up because of that ridiculous comment.

The old lady smiled mischievously but nodded an apologized. "You better work hard to make her fall for you. Good luck!" The old woman whispered to Tsuna before she left.

Tsuna's blush deepened and he blubbered nonsense as he tried to find the words he needed to prove the elderly woman wrong. But before he could, the old woman had rounded the corner. Alicia then walked over to the nearest wall and slammed her head against it a few times.

With a huff she finally returned to Tsuna. "I'm going to forget that that even happened," she said stiffly. Tsuna nodded his head vigorously in agreement and the two continued on their way, this time in a more awkward silence. And just when they thought it couldn't get any worse, Tsuna opened up his front door and was confronted with Kyoko and Haru.

Perfect.

"Tsuna-san where were you?" Haru demanded.

"Sorry Tsuna. We already had dinner without you," Kyoko said apologetically.

If Tsuna had thought through the situation a little more thoroughly then the two might have been able to avoid too much trouble. But then he wasn't nicknamed Dame-Tsuna for nothing. "Eto, its okay Kyoko-chan. Alicia and I already ate dinner."

"You went on a date with Risa-san? Haru yelled.

Alicia was dumbfounded with the brunette's conclusion. And in all her extra years of wisdom and knowledge the best reply she could come up with was, "Hah?"

Tsuna, of course, burst out in a fit of denial. There was no way he was going to let Haru delude Kyoko into believing he went on a date with Alicia, not that there was anything wrong with it, but he was in love with Kyoko and didn't want her to think that he had cheated on her.

But Kyoko was oblivious to all of this and continued to stand where she was and smile, unwittingly allowing sparkles to permeate the air around her.

"Juudaime! Welcome back!" Gokudera shouted excitedly, effectively coming to Tsuna's aid. "How dare you yell at Juudaime, stupid woman!"

Haru's attention was diverted and she focused on yelling at the silver haired boy. Then Yamamoto came in and tried to calm everyone down. Next Reborn popped up and demanded to know why Tsuna had escaped from jail so soon. This was followed by Lambo and I-Pin running in and making more noise.

An eyebrow started to twitch dangerously as the annoyance level kept increasing. If she didn't leave soon, Alicia was sure that she was going to blow everyone in the vicinity sky high. Luckily a low rumble approaching on the road behind her caught her attention. Alicia turned to see a pickup truck with her motorcycle strapped in its bed, park by Tsuna's house.

David climbed out and waved to her. "Hey there Alicia. I had a feeling that you were going to need a ride back soon."

Alicia caught the helmet that he threw at her before responding. "Guess you have somewhere to be if _you_ can't just drive me back."

David nodded and parked her bike next to the gate, so that it wasn't blocking anyone's way out. "I'll see you tomorrow morning."

"Ciao." Alicia waved as her boss/trainer got back into the truck and drove off. It wasn't till the sound of the vehicle has disappeared that Alicia realized that the others had stopped arguing. She turned around to see them staring at her. "What?" She asked blankly.

Yamamoto was the first to react. He laughed a little bit. "Wow Risa, you know how to ride a motorcycle? That's really cool."

Gokudera clicked his tongue and looked away, grumbling something along the lines of her could do so too if he tried.

"Risa-san is a dangerous delinquent or Yankee isn't she?" Haru exclaimed.

Alicia deadpanned. Did it look like she dyed her hair or went around beating people up in a gang? Well, then again she did beat people up, but she most definitely did not belong to a gang or dye her hair! Then again, the mafia could technically be considered a gang. But she only beat bad people up!

"No I am not a delinquent or Yankee. I just find it beneficial to know how to drive every kind of vehicle," Alicia explained.

"That's really amazing Risa-chan!" Kyoko continued to smile obliviously.

Alicia sighed wearily. "Yeah. Well I'm going home now. Today was really long and I really want to get some sleep."

Without waiting for a reply, Alicia turned and walked away. With a quick two fingered salute to the people standing at the door, Alicia kicked the bike into life and drove off.

* * *

><p>Tired from following the group around the previous day, Alicia stuck a micro camera onto the front of Lambo's cow suit and then spent the rest of the day playing with the kids and relaxing.<p>

* * *

><p>The next day she got permission from Reborn to attach a small camera onto Leon so that Hailey could still catch everything, but Alicia wouldn't have to be forced to participate.<p>

Actually she did mess with the story line a little bit by steeping in after Tsuna gave the Zettai-Maken technique a try.

"Oi," She said dangerously as the three thugs started towards the scared brunette. The three muscle-heads stopped and looked around. Alicia walked down the hillside and stopped a few feet in front of Tsuna with her arms crossed. "For what reason are you terrorizing little kids and attempting to beat up Sawada here?" She jabbed her thumb behind her. "How pathetic can you get?" Alicia sniffed disdainfully.

The middle idiot smirked. "Oh? Is a little girl going to stop us?"

Alicia smirked as well. "Come to close to this, _little girl_, and you might not be able to walk ever again."

The three brutes shuddered at Alicia's tangible threat but continued to smile; fooling themselves into thinking the girl in front of them was faking.

"You're just bluffing!" The bully to the right called out.

"Yeah! Little girls like you should learn to stay quiet and just act pretty so that men like us will be more willing to actually take care of ya!" The moron on the other side yelled.

"Don't worry your pretty little head about this too much. We'll show you and those other two a good time once we're done with this runt," The middle one finished.

Alicia felt several veins pop. "Oh? I'm supposed to be taken care of by a bunch of idiots? I could do better by dating a squirrel. At least it has more brains."

The three ground their teeth angrily and charged, yelling battle cries as they ran forward. But their cries changed from a warriors call into girlish screams in a split second as Alicia beat the crap out of them.

Tsuna and the rest watched in amazement off to the side as Alicia took care of the fools like they were nothing, despite being half their size. After beating the three senseless, she took it upon herself to throw them into the river for good measure.

"Fools!" Alicia spat before walking away. She didn't say a work to the others before she left. Those three thugs had left a bad taste in her mouth, so she decided to go fight Hibari to her hearts content. Since Hailey wasn't around, she wouldn't be able to stop their fight as she had many other times. Though, now that she thought about it, Hibari seemed to enjoy sparring with Hailey more that he did with herself. There was always a gleam of enjoyment for the battle in his eyes when he fought her twin. But only pure bloodlust when he fought Alicia. Strange…

* * *

><p>For the expelling crisis, Alicia just hacked into the school cameras and taped the whole event. Gokudera had tried to force her to help them dig for the time capsule, but Alicia had blatantly refused, choosing to lean against the school wall and watch. But it was more boring than anything else, so she was glad when Tsuna found Nezu's secret box. Alicia made sure to hand Tsuna a spare uniform, as Hailey would have, before she left. She whispered the suggestion to fire Nezu for lying to the principal on her way out, smirking after completing her work.<p>

* * *

><p>"Thank you for everything Nana-san!" Alicia said with a smile. She was definitely getting better at greeting people without the vacant or bored look that she usually sported.<p>

Nana smiled and blushed, holding a hand to her face in embarrassment. "Thank you very much Risa-chan! Here come inside!"

Alicia shook her head. "I'm really sorry, but I have a few errands to run. But I do have a cake and a gift from Hailey and me." Alicia handed her a small slim box and a rather larger than needed cake box.

"You and your sister are so sweet. Thank you!" Nana said harmoniously as she took the two boxes.

Alicia smiled, bowed, and left. She had attached a small camera onto Tsuna as well as hide a few around the room last time she was there, so she would be able to catch everything on tape.

The dark haired girl sighed as she walked back to the apartment. Her work was finally done, so now all she had to do was watch for how Yamamoto, Kyoko, Haru, I-Pin, and Lambo get sent to the future.

Although she did wonder, where was Hailey? Shouldn't she have returned _by now_? It was so strange of her sister to be missing for so many days on end.

* * *

><p><strong>So Hailey was the first to disappear into the future! Not what you were expecting right? And who were those people getting out of the car? Ha, ha!<strong>

**Please REVIEW! It's kind of disheartening to see a number of visitors, adds, and favorites, but barely any reviews in comparison...**

**Hope you look forward to future updates! Let me know how you liked this chapter!**


	18. Chapter XVIII

**And so we reach chapter 18, wow! I must thank 10th Squad 3rd Seat for reviewing every single one of my chapters! And TheParadocicalOtaku, I could never think your reviews as spamming, they are really great! And it always makes me happy to read them so thank you! Also thank you to everyone in total who reviewed! All my reviews inspire me to get off my butt and type another chapter!**

**Also a HUGE thank you to AccessBlade! The future arc is all thanks to the help I received from AccessBlade! **

**KHR is not own by me. However Alicia and Hailey along with the Perduto e Dimenticato Famiglia are! **Without further ado here is the next chapter of Twin Dilemma.****

* * *

><p>Chapter XVIII<p>

Alicia was going to spend today at her favorite spot in the park. As far as she knew there was nothing _too_ important going on today, so it would be a great time to take a break. At least that's what she thought till Tsuna came running up to her.

"Risa-san!"

Alicia turned around to see her charge running up to her. '_Dang. And I didn't even get halfway there._' She though sardonically.

Tsuna stopped in front of her and doubled over with his hands on his knees panting. Alicia waited patiently for the boy to catch his breath. "Risa-san have you seen Reborn?" He finally managed. "Do you know where I can find him?"

'_The future._' Alicia's mouth twitched as she tried to keep herself from saying anything unnecessary. "No."

Tsuna looked panic stricken. "I can't find him anywhere and yesterday he was hit with the ten year bazooka, but he didn't come home."

"Perhaps Lambo would be able to help you," Alicia mentioned off handedly.

"Lambo?" Tsuna scrunched his face. How could that annoying little kid help him? But then a thought struck him. "Oh! Adult Lambo! You're right! I'll go ask him. Thanks Risa-san."

Alicia nodded and waved as Tsuna ran back the way he came. Hm, she would have to be careful for now on. Alicia had decided that she was going to wait for Hailey before they went to the future. Perhaps she would go to the park tomorrow instead.

* * *

><p><em>This was horrible. Could his day get any worse?<em>

_After Tsuna had run back home to try to talk to adult Lambo, he had gotten hit by the ten year bazooka instead and had appeared inside of a box that looked awfully similar to a coffin. In the back of his mind he knew what this meant, but he just couldn't admit it. It couldn't be true right? There was just no way. _

_Not only that, but future Gokudera had appeared. The older version of his friend had then insisted that when Tsuna returned to the past, the he take out a red head named Irie Shoichi. At this point Tsuna had interrupted the older man and asked why his future self was in the box. He needed someone to straight out tell him. Tsuna wouldn't admit to it otherwise._

_However, right before the older Gokudera could tell him about his future self, the Gokudera from Tsuna's time had appeared in his place. Just as they realized that they had been in the future for more than five minutes each, they were attacked by some stranger and were completely overpowered by her strange weapons. But instead of killing them, the stranger revealed herself as Lal Mirch, a member of CEDEF. Now they were following her so that they could find the Vongola hideout and figure out some answers. They followed Lal till she set up camp, but when her strange new locator let them know that an enemy was approaching, the three took to dousing the fire and hiding behind a huge boulder._

_But as they were waiting anxiously for the updated Gola Mosca, which Lal explained to be called a Strau Mosca, to slowly approached them they were saved by an unexpected friend._

_Tsuna and Gokudera ran up to their savior to get a better look at who it was._

"_Could you be?…" Gokudera trailed off._

"_Y-Yamamoto?" Tsuna finished in disbelief._

_The older Yamamoto smiled like usual and swung his sword over onto his shoulder._

_Yamamoto frowned a little. "Huh? This isn't some kind of bad joke, is it? I came to get the agent from the External Advisors, but you guys are here too." He tilted his head and placed a hand on his chin. "But you've shrunk. An illusion? A ghost?"_

_Tsuna and Gokudera deadpanned. _

_Yup, this was definitely Yamamoto._

_Tsuna tried to explain that they were transported by the ten year bazooka, but remembered that the Yamamoto from his time didn't know what that device was so switched to trying to explain that instead, but Yamamoto interrupted him._

"_Ah, I see! From the past!" Yamamoto laughed a little bit. "I panicked!" He took a breath to calm himself. "No wonder, I guess this was the interesting thing she was talking about," the swordsman said softly, more to himself than to anyone else. "You seem well, Tsuna."_

_The four continued toward the base at a more leisurely pace. Tsuna and the older Yamamoto chatted about the recent events in Tsuna's and Gokudera's time, making Tsuna feel more relaxed. The more he talked with the older male, the more Tsuna realized that it was his friend despite how much more the older male knew compared to his younger counterpart. Gokudera just scowled at the older male the entire way. There were no words to describe how mad he was._

_Soon they reached a small opening in the trees and Yamamoto stopped. He explained that the location of the hideout that Lal was told about was fake. He then told them that the entrance was hidden through camouflage and called out a box weapon that caused a heavy rain fall. It was then that the entrance was revealed and the other three were ushered inside._

"_We're going down," Yamamoto said calmly as he leaned against the side of the opening._

"_Wow!" Tsuna exclaimed. "The hideout is underground?"_

"_Yeah, that's right," Yamamoto explained while they walked down the stare case. "There are seven entrances just like this."_

'_Seven? Shouldn't there be nine?' Tsuna thought. It worried him a little, but he shoved it to the back of his mind. Perhaps he could ask Yamamoto more about that later. The group passed through a strange barrier, though Lal was the only one affected and fainted as a result. Yamamoto carried the Spartan lady and led the other two to a Victorian style room where Tsuna was finally able to locate his tutor and after a painful, yet still heartfelt reunion with Reborn the group started discussing their situation._

_Finally Gokudera snapped. "You bastard!" He punched Yamamoto hard enough to make blood dribbled down his chin. _

"_Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna shouted in alarm._

"_What were you doing? Why did that happen to Juudaime?"_

_Yamamoto couldn't look the teenager in the eye. "I'm sorry."_

_Gokudera grabbed the older male by the collar of his shirt. "'I'm sorry' doesn't cover it!"_

"_Stop it Gokudera," Reborn interjected. "You, ten years in the future, were in the same position."_

_Gokudera realizing what Reborn meant, let go of Yamamoto. "D-Damn it."_

"_The enemy, the Millefiore Family, has a huge fighting force. And they're cold and cruel," Reborn persisted._

_Yamamoto continued to explain. "When the Vongola HQ fell, Millefiore prepared a talk between the two leaders and called on our boss."_

"_And then?" Tsuna asked seriously. He had to know his fate. He had to know what had become of him in the future._

"_However, they didn't negotiate at all and took the boss' life." Yamamoto lowered his head a little bit in shame. "Since then the Millefiore have ignored all our summons and have continued to kill people on our side. Their goal is to wipe out every last person on the Vongola side."_

_The topic was grave and it only seemed to get worse for Tsuna as he was informed that his parents, Kyoko, and Haru were targets as well. But Reborn let them know that not all hope was lost._

_Reborn turned to the oldest male in the room. "Yamamoto, even though they're separated, the Family's main guardians haven't been confirmed as dead, right?"_

_Yamamoto frowned a little bit, but answered anyways. "Yeah."_

"_Then, there's only one thing to do," Reborn said, turning back to the other two. "You need to gather the six guardians who have been separated."_

"_That's exactly right!" A voice rang out. The TV started to flicker and older versions of the twins appeared._

"_Yo!" Alicia said with a wink and wave._

_Hailey smiled cheerfully. "I guess a ten years younger Tsuna, Gokudera, and Reborn are there since you've activated this video."_

"_First of all," Alicia became serious, "I want to say Yamamoto please don't say anything unnecessary. I know what you're thinking, but there's nothing you can do about it. We made it this way for a reason. Now! The three others, well two because I'm not suicidal enough to even think that Reborn is that worried, needs to calm down. Baka-dera, you need to be more considerate. And Tsuna, it's going to be rough, but I know you can handle it."_

"_This video was made as a warning. Tomorrow at the far end of the abandoned warehouses, you should keep a close eye out." Hailey giggled, like at a side joke only she knew about._

_Alicia sighed. "Don't interfere, but I suggest you watch closely. It might prove beneficial to you later on."_

"_Tsuna, I know you're going to want to go out there. But please don't. That is, unless you want to die." Hailey laughed nervously._

"_He wouldn't die!" Alicia argued._

"_I beg to differ," Hailey said dreadfully. "I'm surprised_ I_ made it this far."_

"_Tch!" Alicia clicked her tongue. "I wasn't that bad. Ah well, it's not like we'll ever know, seeing as this is just a video recording and all."_

_Hailey smiled again and nodded. "Well, we'll see you around."_

"_Ciao," The two girls waved and the video flickered off._

"_Those two are the same as always," Tsuna said, sweat dropping a little._

"_It's just like them, to leave something behind to make sure others aren't depressed," Yamamoto said quietly._

_Tsuna and Gokudera turned in for the night after that. The information load was too much, and the worry was eating them up. He couldn't even think straight._

_But Reborn and Yamamoto remained behind._

"_What was Alicia talking about on that video?" Reborn asked as soon as he knew nobody was eavesdropping. _

_Yamamoto's frown increased. "She probably knew that I wanted her to have made a video for Tsuna."_

_Reborn frowned a little as well. "What happened to those two? I know you said that they are dead. But what happened specifically."_

"_Alicia died six months ago, shot by a Millefiore member when bringing back your pacifier and fedora. Hailey died three months before her from a terminal illness." Yamamoto stared at the ground, still grieving for all his losses._

"_There's something else you're not telling me," Reborn pressed._

_Yamamoto closed his eyes and turned away a little. "I'm sorry Reborn…but I promised I wouldn't tell. They said that it would be revealed later and I trust them."_

_Reborn grimaced a little. What were they hiding?_

* * *

><p>Alicia was a lot of things. But patience wasn't the highest on her list. Especially when her sister was the one testing said patience.<p>

It had been over a week and Hailey still wasn't back.

Now this was troublesome, as they had a mission and the target of their mission had now transferred over into the future.

And yet, Hailey was still nowhere to be found.

Alicia sighed heavily as she continued on her journey to the park. It didn't matter, today she was going to relax under her favorite tree and that was that! So imagine her surprise when she finally sat down on the ground under the tree and the dirt and grass underneath her erupted.

Yup! Alicia had sat down on a homemade land mine! Now she was whizzing across time, plotting revenge on a certain red head, who had planted the device just for her.

* * *

><p>The screen was flashing grabbing the attention of everyone.<p>

"Reborn, what's wrong?" Tsuna asked, panicking. Had the enemy found their hideout? Were they under attack?

Yamamoto directed the screen to the source of the alarm, but all they saw was a bunch of abandoned warehouses.

Suddenly there was an explosion on top of a pile of junk and a pink cloud covered the area. Then something, or rather someone, was blasted up and out of the cloud and tumbled down the pile of rubbish. Tsuna winced every time they hit something particularly hard. The person was shouting in pain the whole way down and it appeared that they were hitting everything that jutted out at an odd angle. It seemed to take an eternity before they finally landed on the bottom... on their head...

"ITAI!" The person grabbed their head and rolled back and forth on the ground. "It hurts! It hurts! It hurts! What the hell!" The person yelled out a string of profanities, swearing to murder the person who caused her to come out at such a place as they continued to roll across the ground.

Finally the person sat up to reveal a very pissed off Alicia.

"Ah! Risa-san!" Tsuna shouted. He smiled a bit, at least she was alright.

"Oh no," Yamamoto muttered. Everyone turned to the older version of their friend in alarm. But the camera was able to show them first.

"What do we have here?" A smug voice called out. The screen widened to reveal a massive group of Millefiore members. "Dimenticato Alicia, the Vongola Juudaime's Moon Guardian, right here for the picking. How kind of you."

Several veins popped on Alicia's forehead. "This day just keeps getting better and better doesn't it? First I literally get blasted through time, now I have a bunch of ugly monkeys here to fight me...Not! Now if you'll excuse me," Alicia stood up and brushed herself off, "I'm going to find a certain someone and beat the crap out of them for sending me here."

For some reason Tsuna felt like he should go into hiding for a while.

"I'm afraid you'll be coming with us girly. Open box weapon!" The group called out their weapons.

"Oh no! We have to help her!" Tsuna yelled.

Reborn kicked Tsuna. "Dame-Tsuna, remember what older Alicia said last night."

Tsuna paused as he recalled the video message. But still…he wanted to go out there to ensure her safety. But to his surprise Alicia yawned.

"Box weapons? What a stupidly obvious name. But I guess that means I'm in the future. Look I don't have time to play with you guys," Alicia waved them away with a bored expression.

"What was that!" The man, who was probably the leader of the group, yelled.

"From the looks of it, you're probably all D Rank soldiers right? And I refuse to fight someone that much weaker than me, no matter how_ many_ of you there are." Alicia shrugged.

"What was that!" The leader yelled again. "How dare you! I'm a C Rank officer!"

"Hah?" Alicia asked disbelievingly. "Who did you bribe to get _that_ promotion?"

The group in the Vongola hideout, save Reborn, sweat dropped.

This seemed to push the leader too far, so they all charged at the girl. None of them noticed the predatory smirk that graced her lips.

The Vongola males, safely hidden underground, watched as Alicia jumped up and started attacking the group of males. One tried to attack her from behind, but Alicia's feet ignited with silver flames and she sent a roundhouse kick to the man, snapping a few ribs. She was able to take down half of the group in practically no time at all.

Alicia landed back on the ground, but instead of getting ready for another round she sat down with her legs crossed and her back turned to the rest. "I won't continue fight unless you bring me an A Rank officer," Alicia yelled childishly at them, even puffing up her cheeks in a pout. "I'm so pissed right now that if I don't get a real fight then _someone's_ gonna pay tenfold!" A small box a few feet from her caught her attention. Alicia leaned over to pick it up and smiled like a Cheshire cat.

"How dare you!" The leader shouted, outraged but at the same time fearful. "How dare you mock the might of the Millefiore!" The group charged once more.

But this was a bad move on their part. Alicia held up the box weapon left behind for her and lit her ring. "Open box weapon," she muttered and a couple of guns just like Xanxus's without the X on the side came out. Alicia smirked and blasted the whole group with one shot. She walked over and stomped on the chest of the barely conscious leader. "And how dare _you_ mock the might of not only the Vongola, but of the Dimenticato." Alicia then stormed away grumbling incoherent threats to the air.

Yamamoto trained the cameras on the angered girl so the group could watch her progress to see where she would go next. She finally stopped in front of a soda machine and hit a few buttons. The device moved to the side to reveal a secret passageway.

"Oh? I didn't think she would find an entrance so quickly! Or even know the password!" Yamamoto said in surprise. He returned the cameras to their original position and the group waited patiently for their friend to arrive.

When Alicia came storming into the room, she ignored everyone, but Yamamoto. "You!" She ran forward and grabbed the man by his collar. "Why the hell would you leave my dead remains in such a shitty ass place? Do you know how much that _hurt_! Haven't you ever heard of respecting the dead? I mean, come on! Really!" Alicia yelled and ranted.

"Gun freak…is dead?" Gokudera asked quietly, effectively stopping the dark haired girl's tirade.

Tsuna's eyes widened a bit further from his initial surprise of Alicia yelling at the older version of their friend. What was this? It couldn't possibly be true right? Alicia and Hailey were practically indestructible. There was just no way…

Alicia finally turned to the rest of the males in the room. "Yeah, Hailey and I are dead in this time. What of it?"

* * *

><p>It felt like the world had stopped for Tsuna. Alicia and Hailey…were dead? No way…<p>

Alicia walked over and flicked Tsuna on the forehead. "Get over it. I don't see why you have to be so freaked out. I'm mean really, you guys seem to be having a more difficult time getting over it than I did and this was_ my_ death."

"We hadn't told them," Reborn said stiffly.

"I don't see why not. It wouldn't change anything." Alicia shook her head. "Hailey would have still died of deterioration and the Millefiore would have still shot me. Them knowing won't prevent that from happening."

"You could have handled that a little more delicately," Reborn practically growled.

"Wait! You said that the guardians hadn't been confirmed dead yet!" Tsuna shouted suddenly.

Reborn didn't look at his student. "I said none of the _main_ guardians."

Tsuna was about to argue, but then remembered the star and moon battle during the ring conflict where Hailey explained that she and her sister were a part of the night set. He didn't know what to do anymore. Those two were always there, so how could they die?

Reborn's frown deepened. "What I want to know is how you already knew about you death. This is your first time to the future, yet you seem to know as much or more as the ones who live in this time frame."

Alicia stared at the small hitman emotionlessly. "I'm part of the Dimenticato Famiglia, of course I would know."

Reborn narrowed his eyes a little bit. "Just how much do you two know about this future?"

"Classified," Alicia said blankly.

"Did you know this would happen?" Yamamoto asked.

"Classified," Alicia repeated.

"Did you two do anything to stop this from happening?" Tsuna burst. He stared at Alicia desperately, willing for her to say something to defend herself.

"That…I don't know…" Alicia said softly. For some reason Alicia felt like she would have tried if it was for Tsuna. That defeated puppy dog look of his was as bad as Hailey's…maybe even worse.

"Well if Alicia is here, then the next strongest guardian available who we should find is Vongola Decimo's strongest guardian, Hibari Kyoya." Reborn brought around the original topic of locating all six guardians.

"Tonfa boy in this time must be a _ton_ stronger now!" Alicia muttered excitedly to herself. "I can't wait to fight him!"

Tsuna sweat dropped a little. Alicia was the only person he knew who would want to pick a fight with Hibari. Then again, she and Hailey were the only people who could hold their own against him. He turned back to Reborn. "It would be nice to have Hibari with us, but…"

"Well, I'm already here. Out of the remaining guardians, he is the strongest!" Gokudera said smugly.

"Tch, such arrogance," Alicia muttered. Thankfully Gokudera didn't hear her so no argument ensued. Tsuna just stared at his friend with deadpan eyes.

"But where is Hibari-san now?" Tsuna asked Reborn and Yamamoto.

"Well we don't really know," Reborn said unapologetically. He threw a glance at Alicia, but she didn't look like she was about to divulge that information anytime soon.

"Huh?" Tsuna was taken aback.

"I've been away from Namimori for a while, so I don't know where the guardians are," Yamamoto informed the group. "But I have a clue on where Hibari is."

Alicia narrowed her eyes a little. Yamamoto had glanced at her quickly when he was talking about being away. What was that about exactly?

Alicia ignored the rest as she contemplated on how Hailey was going to get to the future. It shouldn't take her that long now. And knowing her sister, Alicia was sure that Hailey would probably just go up to Shoichi and let him hit her with the bazooka. Speaking of the bazooka, why did she have such a rough landing? Wasn't she supposed to just switch places with her future self? Maybe it was because she was already dead. '_Crap, does that mean Hailey is going to be blasted out as well? Ugh, that means she's going to be in a horrible mood. I pray for whoever is on the receiving end of her wrath._' Alicia shuddered a little at the thought.

"Risa-san, aren't you coming with?" Tsuna asked, breaking Alicia out of her thoughts.

"Huh? What?" Alicia looked around and noticed that Gokudera and Yamamoto were already nearly out the door. Tsuna was standing in front of her.

"We're going out to look for Hibari-san," Tsuna reminded her.

Alicia was about to ask why, since Hibari was already so close by, when she remembered that the others didn't know so she snapped her mouth shut. It was then that another thought came to mind. If she remembered correctly then Haru, Kyoko, I-Pin, and Lambo would show up, then all of them including Yamamoto would come from the past.

"Risa-san?" Tsuna waved a hand in front of her face. Alicia had zoned out again.

Reborn frowned a little. It was obvious that Alicia was mulling over some secrets.

The black haired girl blinked and shook her head a little. "Sorry, just thinking about something. Yeah, I'll come with. Someone needs to pick up your corpses when you epically fail out there."

"You shouldn't think so morbidly," Tsuna said with a deadpan expression.

Alicia smirked and threw an arm over the brunette's shoulder. "Just joking, Tsuna, and I know how to fight in this era so you'll be fine! Besides, if I let you get hurt too badly, then I'll be failing my mission, so you don't have anything to worry about. I'll make sure that you and your friends live!"

The group trouped out of the room, toward one of the exits of the base. But soon after, an explosion announced the arrival of Lambo and I-Pin's group. While Tsuna and Gokudera were dazed Alicia ran forward. She took the blast from the older and darker skinned male.

"I'll take care of them! Lambo, take care of Kyoko-san and Haru-san!" I-Pin instructed.

"With those injuries you can't!" Lambo argued.

"That's right!" Alicia called out. The smoke cleared to reveal Alicia with her sleeves torn a little, but uninjured for the most part.

"Risa-nee!" The two shouted.

"All four of you get going! Yamamoto and I will take care of this!" Alicia kept her eyes trained on the two black spell in front of her. But the two seemed frozen to the spot in shock from seeing their dead sister figure. "Shit!" Alicia grabbed the two as Nozaru sent out a blast from his own scythe and fired a shot to counter.

Yamamoto ran forward and counted Nosaru's strike with his sword.

"Thanks Yamamoto," Alicia panted. She winced; she had gotten hit a little so her back was in pain.

Yamamoto smiled a little and nodded before turning back to the fight with a frown.

"Everyone, are you alright?" Tsuna shouted as he ran over.

"Hang in there!" Gokudera shouted as well.

"Vongola! And Gokudera!" Lambo cried happily.

"I told you." The dust cloud cleared and an older Haru came into view. "Tsuna-san would definitely come and save us." She walked over to the two teenagers. "Hahi! It seems I've grown taller all of a sudden!"

Tsuna and Gokudera deadpanned.

Alicia hissed as she stood up, clutching her side a little.

"Risa-san are you alright?" Tsuna shouted in concern.

"Risa-nee!" Lambo cried.

Alicia chopped the cow man's head harshly. "Next time move when I tell you to!"

Lambo whimpered and held his head, mumbling apologies.

"Risa…san…" Haru said softly.

"Hey," Alicia said half-heartedly as she finally straightened.

Before anyone could do anything Haru stepped forward and punched Alicia in the face.

"Haru!" Tsuna exclaimed. He was about to scold her, but stopped. There were tears pouring down the grown woman's face.

"What the hell was that for?" Alicia shouted, outraged.

"How could you do that to him?" Haru demanded. "You _knew_ when you were going to die! You _knew_ that you were going to die young! So why? _Why_ would you do that to him? How could you be so selfish to lead him on like that?"

Alicia froze as confusion took over. She lowered her head slightly so that her bangs covered her eyes. Alicia could tell that this was a grave topic. She eventually turned to the older woman with an expressionless face. "Lead him on? What are you talking about?"

Haru grabbed Alicia by her collar. "Tsuna-san! Why would you do that to him! He had me and Kyoko, but he could never move on because of you!"

Alicia's eyes widened a bit as understanding flashed across her eyes, but the next second it was gone. She slapped Haru's hands away. "I have no idea what you're talking about. And even if I did, it wouldn't have been my fault. Tsuna is free to feel whatever he wants and no one has any control over that except him. I don't know what happened in the future, but hurting Tsuna certainly wouldn't have been on purpose."

"Ara!" I-Pin suddenly cried out. She looked around frantically.

"What's the matter?" Tsuna asked.

"On no! Kyoko-san isn't here!" I-Pin cried. The group started in alarm.

"Now that you mention it…" Lambo mumbled.

"I couldn't deflect all of the blast, so she probably got sent flying through another building," Alicia said, returning to her sarcastic self.

"Go look for her Tsuna!" Yamamoto called out. "I'll take care of the enemy."

Tsuna agreed and ran off to find the orange haired girl. He didn't notice Tozaru preparing to fire a blast from his storm scythe.

"Tsuna, look out!" Alicia shouted. She shoved the brunette into the warehouse and took the blast herself.

"Risa-san/Risa/Risa-nee!" The groups shouted in concern. The dust cloud cleared to reveal a badly injured and unconscious Alicia.

Yamamoto turned back to the two black spell members intending to avenge Alicia for that cheap shot, but noticed that the darker skinned black spell member had disappeared while their attention was diverted. Yamamoto grimaced. He would have to take care of this kid first.

* * *

><p>"It-t-t-t-t," Alicia muttered as she pushed herself off the ground. That was definitely going to hurt later on. Storm flames caused the worst injuries and took the longest to heal, even with her sun flames. She rubbed her head a little and looked around. She saw a younger Yamamoto, Haru, I-Pin, and Lambo unconscious. "Shit, I was knocked out by someone so much weaker than me."<p>

Alicia looked around to see Gokudera staring at his ring and panicking. "Turn your resolve to protect Tsuna and the Family into a flame you idiot!" She shouted.

Gokudera turned around to see Alicia pushing herself off the ground, despite the obvious pain she was feeling. "I don't want to hear that from you either, you stupid gun-freak!" He yelled to cover his relief. He lit his ring with a red flame and was finally able to open his box weapon.

Alicia watched for a bit as she watched Gokudera struggle and figure out his weapon. "I don't use guns! I don't have any bullets!"

"Use your dynamite dammit!" Alicia yelled after him.

"Guess this will have to do," Gokudera muttered as he whirled around and stuffed a stick of dynamite through the other end and fired.

Alicia nodded once, satisfied, and headed toward the place Tsuna was fighting Tozaru. She made it there just in time to see Tsuna punch Tozaru hard enough to send him flying out of the building and collapse onto the floor from his own injuries.

"Tsuna-kun? Tsuna-kun!" Kyoko shouted in concern.

"He'll be alright, just don't shake him too much," Alicia said as she walked over, holding her side.

"Risa-chan!" Kyoko cried in concern once she saw the other girl's injuries as well.

"Calm down," Alicia sighed. The elder twin reached down and pulled Tsuna onto her back. "Come one. Let's go meet up with the others."

Alicia walked slowly, panting a great deal as she walked back over to the other group. Kyoko kept glancing over at the two in concern, but Alicia would wave her off. It felt like forever before Gokudera and Yamamoto came back into view.

"So that's what's going on!" Gokudera exclaimed.

"That's right," Alicia said loudly. "The Vongola Rings are the ones who must gather. The bearers of the rings will save this future."

The rest of the group turned to face her. "Ah! Tsuna-san/Tsuna/Juudaime!" Haru, Yamamoto, and Gokudera called out.

Alicia's knees finally buckled and she fell forward with Tsuna sliding off to the side. '_What a pathetic way to start the future arc_,' Alicia thought sarcastically to herself as she hit the ground. '_I bet Hailey will laugh her ass off about this later_.' Her name was the last thing she heard before everything faded into darkness.

* * *

><p><strong>So has anyone guessed who Hailey met up with in the last chapter?<strong>

**By the way! I have a poll up, even though it seems kind of random, it's going to help me with the Arcobaleno Arc! I'm asking which two arcobaleno are your favorite! You can answer through a review, but I would rather you just go to the poll itself.**

**Anyways please tell me what you thought about this chapter. It was mostly just trying to get everyone into the future, but I hoped it was amusing!**

**Let me know!**


	19. Chapter XIX

**Hi there! Here's another chapter of Twin Dilemma! This was a couple days later than I wanted it to be, but some personal issues came up and I wasn't able to touch my computer for a few days so it can't be helped. Hopefully I'll be able to get out another chapter by next weekend, but I'll have to see since this week is finals week. xp**

**I hope you like this chapter, but I must warn you that this one is probably going to move kind of slowly.**

**Tell me what you think through a REVIEW!**

* * *

><p>Chapter XIX<p>

Alicia seethed in silence as she listened to Reborn explain the situation to the new arrivals. It was irritating her to no end that they were taking it so badly when _they_ didn't even have to fight. To make things worse, Alicia couldn't heal Tsuna's wounds. Not because she was incapable, but because Hailey and she had decided not to use their flames in the future until the others learned what the capability for each flame was. So Alicia had to sit back and allow their charge to be in pain. But to allow such a shallow injury to keep hurting her charge was damaging her pride as a guardian.

A burst of sobbing drew the black haired girl's attention. Her eyes zeroed in on Haru. Alicia's eyes narrowed dangerously into a glare as she watched the girl run out of the room with Kyoko trailing behind her.

'_How dare she cry like that! Had she no shame? She was going to burden Tsuna with her fears. She was going to be weak and cry in front of him, then on him. Tsuna has to protect everyone and she was going to add her dead weight to all of that. Like saving the world wasn't enough_!' Alicia griped to herself.

She followed Yamamoto and Reborn, who was hitching a ride on Yamamoto's shoulder, out of the room toward Tsuna. Even though she wanted to run ahead and stop Haru, Alicia knew that this would end up being part of Tsuna's motivation to get them back to the past.

She leaned against the wall next to the door and watched as Kyoko pulled back and comforted a sobbing Haru from continuing to weep into Tsuna's chest. It was taking a lot of energy to stop herself from rushing over and punching the stupid girl.

'_Don't kill them Alicia, Tsuna needs them. Yeah, just keep repeating that. You can't maul them because they are important to Tsuna…and the other guardians too. Yeah, I meant them too._' Haru sniffled a little more as she and Kyoko left the room. '_Noisy, annoying, crying girls! Arg! Why can't they do anything else! They just cry and scream, and then all of the sudden they are the maiden in distress and Tsuna must come and save them! I mean the hero…Then again in this story Tsuna is the hero, so I didn't need to correct myself…Heck, why am I even thinking all of this? It makes Kyoko and Haru more irritating. Grrrrr. I _don't _like them! Not one little bit! If you're scared, then _do_ something about it! Boo hoo, we're in a dark depressing future. Someone save us, so that we can sit back and look pretty. ARG! This is just making me even _more_ mad! Calm down Alicia. Breath._' Alicia took a deep breath and closed her eyes. '_Okay, now! What would Hailey do?...Hailey, you're supposed to be my voice of reason! So why can't I imagine anything but you taking a butcher knife to them…Though that would be funny…No! No! Think Alicia, think!...I guess she would try to find out if everything was going smoothly…And actually be listening to the guys' conversation about the future…Maybe I should stop talking to myself now…But I wonder why Hailey isn't here yet. I figured she would arrive right after Reborn, or possibly before. So why-_'

"Isn't that right Alicia?" Reborn called out suddenly.

"Huh? What?" Alicia broke her glare with the floor, which she didn't even realize she was staring at.

"Stupid gun-freak! Weren't you listening?" Gokudera demanded angrily.

"No," Alicia replied bluntly, but truthfully, with a blank face.

"Now, now. Alicia probably had something important to think about," Yamamoto said brightly before Gokudera could make an attempt to attack the teenage girl.

Reborn looked down to hide his frown. Whatever a panther from the Dimenticato was thinking about probably contained the events that would take place soon…Then again in Alicia's case it was probably some hot headed remark about the two girls who just left. He turned back and faced the girl. "The letter the older Gokudera received implies that we, from the past, must be the ones to defeat Byakuran since Tsuna and the rest of you have the Vongola Rings. And if we defeat the red headed man then everything would return to normal and we should return to the past."

Alicia stared at them like they were stupid. "It took you _that long_ to get that from Hailey's letter? Honestly, I thought the most difficult part was deciphering your weird G-Code! Which I don't understand when and how she ever learned it."

"Hailey-chan wrote that?" Tsuna asked.

'_Erk. Was I supposed to say that?_' Despite her troubled thought, Alicia maintained a straight face. "Can't you tell by the handwriting?" Might as well roll with it.

"But our Hailey-chan isn't in this time and you said the Hailey-chan in this time was dead," Tsuna said, confused.

Alicia raised an eyebrow at the boy's question. "Isn't it obvious?"

"She wrote that letter before she died," Reborn stated out loud.

"Bingo," Alicia responded.

"She knew that far ahead?" Reborn was not happy. "How much do you two know?"

This conversation was getting into dangerous territory. "Were Dimenticato. We know what is needed."

"Enough to know that we would appear from the past?" Reborn pressed. He wanted answers, and he wanted them _now_.

Alicia rolled her eyes. "Since when have you known Hailey and me from not knowing what's going on around Tsuna and his guardians?"

"Whitey was always more informed than you, but she's not here!" Gokudera pointed out.

Alicia shrugged. "I never said I didn't know anything. You guys just assumed that. Besides, I was always alright everyone thinking Hailey knew more. I also never cared for the fine details like she did. But that doesn't mean I don't know what the next big thing is going to take place next."

"So you know what's going to happen?" Reborn questioned at once.

'_Erk. Not good._' Alicia grimaced. "I'm just saying that I know a lot of things, maybe not as much as Hailey, but enough."

"Risa-san, please! If you know how to get back to the past, then please tell us! I can't let everyone stay here and get hurt anymore!" Tsuna pleaded.

Alicia stared at the boy emotionlessly. It hurt her that she was going to have to deny Tsuna's request, especially when he looked so desperate, but he needed this in order to grow stronger. "Then what of the future? You'll just be stalling the inevitable."

"Then send Kyoko, Haru, I-Pin, and Lambo back!" Tsuna nearly yelled in frustration. "They have nothing to do with this! And Lambo and I-Pin are just children! I'm sure Hailey would want their safety as well." He would have continued, but Alicia looked so sad, almost pained.

"I…don't want them here either…But in order to get all of us to the past…it would be suicide at this point. None of you are strong enough and I can't support you on my own. You need to be able to take care of yourself. The trip back to the past is a long one. Even with my interference, it would end badly if we don't take the right steps. " Alicia looked away from them, looking off into space with glazed eyes are she thought about the upcoming trials.

"Do you know anything about anyone strong who works for Millefiore?" Reborn inquired.

Alicia grimaced again. "What did I say about finer details? I don't care unless they're someone worth fighting."

Tsuna dead panned. Alicia had the same logic as Hibari.

"However…" the midnight colored hair girl said slowly. The other's ear perked up in the hope that she was going to tell them something useful. "Why on earth do I have guns like Xanxus's for a box weapon?" She complained incredulously. "Why couldn't I get something unique like a missile launcher or M16 or something!"

Tsuna nearly fell over. _What_ did that have to do with _anything_ that they were talking about? There was no doubt that this girl had her mind on fighting _way_ too much to be healthy.

"I should go find Hibari so that I know where I rank in terms of fighting," Alicia muttered off handedly, probably more to herself than anyone in the room. However it reminded the others about their original topic of locating the other guardians. "Maybe I could spar with Lal instead…"

"Ah!" Tsuna exclaimed.

"What is it Juudaime? Are you in pain?" Gokudera instantly inquired.

"No, Risa-san gave me an idea," Tsuna replied calmly.

"What is it Tsuna?" Yamamoto asked.

Tsuna turned to his baseball nut of a friend with a smile. "We should also ask Lal Mirch to train us since she also knows how to fight in this era."

If Alicia was a cat, then her ear would have been able to twitch into Tsuna's direction. "_Also_?" She asked. She did not like where this word was stemming from.

"Well…" Tsuna faced the girl with a small smile and raised his free hand to rub the back of his head. "I was hoping that you would be able to train us Risa-san. You've already proven to be quite capable at fighting in the future."

"You can fight with box weapons and flames like it was natural," Reborn added. "You even demanded for a stronger opponent."

The girl studied the teenagers intently, to the point where Tsuna started to fidget uncomfortably. "No."

"Why not?" Gokudera demanded immediately.

"You would die from my training methods," Alicia said simply.

"What was that! Are you questioning our ability to fight?" Gokudera yelled, outraged.

Alicia's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Think carefully boy. Why would I know how to fight so easily in this time? I, like you, should be lacking ten years of experience. However, I was able to light my ring in a matter of seconds, whereas you took a good portion of your fight."

"That was because the Dimenticato are supposed to know everything, aren't they!" Gokudera spat.

"To get to the point of being able to spar with one of the Arcobaleno, without dying, and with fewer years of experience?" Alicia raised an eyebrow once more. "I don't think so. It was because Hailey and I were trained to the bone to become strong enough to handle the events to come. Any normal person would have died a thousand times over. _It. Was. Hell_, those five years of training. 'Spartan tutoring' doesn't even cover it."

A bead of sweat trailed down the side of Tsuna's face. He could tell from Alicia's eyes that she wasn't exaggerating. That must have been one horrible childhood.

But Reborn smirked. Hailey and Alicia just got more interesting. '_Able to fight with one of the strongest seven and live huh?_' He would definitely love to get the chance to try that out. He wondered if they were strong enough to defeat on of them if the twins worked together. Reborn had heard rumors that the panthers were the strongest Dimenticato members since the time of the first twins Sarah and Michael. A fight with both of them would most likely be a lot of fun for Reborn since it had been a while since he had a real challenge.

"That doesn't explain why you can't train us," Gokudera pointed out.

Alicia sighed heavily. "It means that all I know is how to use those training methods. You would all die in the first five minutes. And if by _some miracle_ you manage to live, you would still be out of commission for the next month. I'm not as patient as Hailey. I can't come up with a training regimen for each of you. That _and_ it would be a lot of extra work and I'm too lazy to do any of that."

Tsuna and Gokudera deadpanned, Yamamoto just sweat dropped a little.

"Anyways I'll go with you to ask Lal Mirch to train you." Alicia pushed herself away from the door.

Tsuna smiled. "Thanks for helping us ask for help."

"Huh?" Alicia raised her eyebrow, this time confused. "Help you ask for help? I'm just going so I can heckle you guys."

This time Tsuna really did fall over.

* * *

><p>Alicia sniggered a little bit as she watched Tsuna and Gokudera beg for Lal's assistance. It was actually kind of amusing to watch, especially when Reborn landed on Tsuna's head hard enough to make the boy bow down again.<p>

"I refuse." Lal replied coldly. "Ask Yamamoto."

"Well about that." Reborn hopped off Tsuna's head and up onto Yamamoto's shoulder. "Yamamoto regressed back into a baseball-nut, as you can see."

Yamamoto laughed light heartedly. "Yo."

"Why you!" Gokudera growled. "You better lower your head too! Jeez!"

"Y-Yamamoto," Tsuna muttered quietly.

This didn't affect Lal as much as they thought it should have. "Then as Alicia."

"Hey," Alicia called out, whining a little, "don't drag me into this. Besides, Lal-san, you are _way_ more patient than I'll ever be, so you'll be able to train them successfully without killing them."

Lal frowned a little, breaking her look of indifference. She closed her eyes in irritation before speaking again. "I don't have time to play with you. I'm leaving. Stay here." She opened her eyes to look at the young soon to be mafia don once more. "You'll survive a little longer."

"Please wait!" Tsuna called out. "We're serious. It's not just because Reborn told us to!"

"Let's stop this, Juudaime!"

Tsuna turned his attention to his storm guardian with slight surprise. "Huh?"

"We don't have to rely on these stupid women!"

"But-" Tsuna started to argue. They needed a proper teacher.

Gokudera turned to watch Lal walk away. "Besides, I don't believe she's qualified to teach anyone!"

Alicia snorted a little. "What a foolish and hot-headed remark."

This made Reborn smirk. "Actually, she's specialized in just that." The two teenagers turned their attention to the small hitman. "Lal Mirch was the instructor of COMSUBIN, and elite Italian unit. Even I acknowledge her skills as an instructor." Reborn said the last part loud enough for Lal to hear. "After all, she's the one who raised Colonello to be a real man before he became an Arcobaleno."

Tsuna and Gokudera shouted in similar ranges of shock and disbelief about Reborn's statement. But Alicia tuned them out again. She was wondering if she should use her leverage on Lal, however she was hopping to save it until later, just in case. She had found something interesting, and slightly depressing, when she had raided her rooms documents. She would like to avoid it, but if it would make Lal accept the job faster, then perhaps Alicia should speak up….

Nah, too easy.

Loud annoying laughter broke Alicia from her thoughts. She looked around like the others to see Lambo running up to the group carrying a couple of big guns.

"Tsuna! Lookie, lookie!" The cow child called out. "Lots of guns!"

"Lambo! Give those back!" I-Pin scolded as she chased after the small boy.

"Lambo! Where did you get those things?" Tsuna exclaimed in alarm.

"In a room way, way back there," Lambo replied innocently. "It's fun, just like a maze!"

Alicia whistled. "Wow, those aren't bad. I'd love to test those out at a shooting range!"

Tsuna dead panned at Alicia's excited remark, but shook it off and knelt down in front of the young boy. "Please, just stay put! We're asking something really important right now."

Lambo completely ignored the older boy's urgency. "Let's play, Tsuna!"

Screaming from the kitchen drew the males' attention. Meanwhile Alicia knelt in front of Lambo as well. "Kid, here is two pieces of candy in exchange for those two guns."

Lambo's eyes sparkled and he immediately handed the weapons over. He ran after the boys after he had received his trade.

"You know," Alicia said as she stood up slowly. "It might be in your best interests to stick around. After all," she turned a little so that she was half facing the blue haired woman, "I might be able to give you the information you seek about that person."

Lal's eyes narrowed a little, but Alicia ignored it and walked away. After a few steps, she heard Lal turn around and follow. The two of them stopped in the middle of the kitchen doorway and watched as the chaos ensued for the small group of kids. Reborn took notice and joined them. Alicia didn't say anything as Reborn warmed Lal up to the idea of at least giving the boys a chance.

"We can't repeat that incident again." Reborn finished.

Alicia nodded and turned her attention away from everyone else once again. There was nothing else she was needed for, but perhaps she should stick around to watch. Lal Mirch might say something about Hailey and Alicia, or the other Dimenticato's, that she really shouldn't. If she could, Alicia would like to keep her flame's abilities secret till after the future. Hailey also wanted her star flame's ability on the down low, until it was necessary. Her flame may _sound_ powerful, but it used up a great deal of Hailey's strength. Everyone would expect too much of Alicia's twin if they knew.

"Let's go, guys," Reborn said to the teenage males as he too turned to follow Giannini to the training room.

"H-Hold on." Tsuna and the other two boys started forward as well.

"Explore!" Lambo cheered. "Lambo-san's going too!" Lambo ran off.

"Ah! Wait, Lambo," I-Pin ran after the small boy.

Alicia turned to leave as well, but was called back.

"Wait Risa-san! Aren't you going to help us with dinner?" Haru called out.

"Un," Kyoko nodded. "The girls are going to help with the chores since we won't be fighting."

Alicia looked back and raised an eyebrow at them. "I'm going with them to help. Don't bother making something for me. I'll be going back to my room after this." Alicia turned the corner to follow the others and the door slide closed.

Haru huffed a little bit. "How rude!"

"Do you think Alicia is going to eat something?" Kyoko asked in concern. "I don't think it would be very healthy for her to skip meals like that."

"We can make something just in case," Haru offered.

Kyoko smiled and nodded. "Yeah, maybe Tsuna-kun will be able to convince Risa-chan to come to dinner!"

Haru smiled half-heartedly. "Y-Yeah. Anyways, who is that bitter sounding lady who kept going on about stuff I didn't understand?"

* * *

><p>Alicia's brow twitched dangerously as Lambo yelled and screamed loudly as he ran around the room with I-Pin chasing after him. Just as she was about to snap, the child ran out of the room through the small gap in the automatic doors. Alicia took this time to program the door to shut and prevent any other outside disturbances.<p>

Alicia watched with a serious scowl as Lal explained her conditions for training the trio. Reborn then stepped in to emphasize the urgency for learning how to properly fight with rings and boxes. Lal took over again after that and started explaining the two functions of a ring.

Lal turned back to the males after hitting Yamamoto and taking a few paces away. "Now, let's go it. I heard Sawada and Gokudera lit their rings with flames. That had better be true."

While Tsuna looked unsure, Gokudera looked confident, almost smug. (Arrogant in Alicia's book.)

"Damn straight," Gokudera called out as he turned to face the Spartan trainer.

Lal wasn't fazed by the young boy's confidence. "Show me."

"I don't remember what actually happened very well," Tsuna admitted to Lal.

"Imagine turning resolve into a flame," Gokudera muttered, drawing the others' attention.

"Gokudera-kun?" Tsuna called out.

"Resolve into flames. Resolve into flames." Gokudera chanted this a few more times and even stuck his fist out a little as he tried to bring forth his flame again, but to no avail. He pulled his fist back and looked at his ring in concern. "W-What's wrong? It worked last time."

'_Time for a change in script_,' Alicia thought as she pushed herself away from the wall and walked over to the group. "You are forgetting your true resolve, octopus-head." Alicia held up her fist and lit her ring with her silver flame. "You are the supposed to be the right hand man, are you not? You will not get anywhere in this time with a half-assed resolve."

"Of course I have a strong resolve!" Gokudera argued. He turned back to his ring and glared at his a little as he concentrated once more. A second later a red flame sprang to life. "Yeah!"

"Way to go, Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna congratulated in amazement. "It's a bright red dying will flame!"

Alicia smirked and let her flame dissipate. She crossed her arms and walked over to Reborn, leaning against the crate upon which the small hitman sat. Everything was going as it should. Well, Alicia did take one of Lal's lines away, but that wasn't a very big deal. On the other hand, perhaps this meant Alicia could and should just leave the room. Overall this was very boring, and Alicia would like to get a proper amount of sleep since she knew everyone was okay now. For some reason, this ear made Alicia feel very sleepy. At the very least, she could take a nap, especially since Tsuna was going to take a while to light his ring again.

Yeah, she'll just sleep a little bit and worry about their conversation later.

Just after a short…nap…

* * *

><p><em>She was running as fast as she could, but it didn't seem fast enough. Her sister was calling out for her, so why couldn't she run any faster?<em>

_Finally Alicia rounded the corner and saw Hailey squatting on the ground and crying. There was a group of girls and boys alike laughing at her. A few were either pulling on her hair or throwing things at her. All of them were calling the girl mean names and teasing Hailey._

"_P-Please stop," Hailey whimpered._

"_What a stupid person!"_

"_We can tell, you dye your hair! Just admit it!"_

"_I don't see why though, it just makes her even uglier."_

"_She's just an attention seeking whore!"_

"_I bet that's why she has such good grades!"_

"_Yeah, she must do the principal and teachers!"_

"_I think she just looks like an ugly granny with white hair!"_

"_She must have been poisoned or something when she was little to have those weird eyes!"_

"_They're so creepy, maybe she's a monster!"_

"_Nobody wants you around!"_

"_Why don't you just go die somewhere you fag!"_

"_Stop it!" Alicia yelled. "Leave her alone!" She ran in front of her sister and stretched her arms out protectively._

"_Why even bother with her Alicia?"_

"_Yeah, you're really popular and you're actually _normal_!"_

"_You would have a better life if your demon of a sister wasn't even a live!"_

"_You take that back!" Alicia pounced and started beating up the other kids._

"_Alicia, stop!" Hailey jumped up and pulled her sister back. But by that time it was too late. All the kids were lying on the ground, groaning and covered in bruises. Hailey sighed and held up a little bottle of eye drops. "Look Alicia, I wasn't crying for real. I just faked it so that they would feel satisfied with themselves. They would have left me alone in a few more minutes."_

_Alicia stared blankly at her sister as she panted, unsure of how to react. "But-"_

"_I didn't want to cause any trouble Alicia. You should have just left them alone"_

"_But they were calling you horrible things!"_

"_That's okay." Hailey smiled brightly. "Alicia, mommy, and daddy don't call me that, so I'm alright."_

"_But they were going to hurt you physically too!"_

_Hailey laughed lightly. "Alicia, I can fight if I need too! I don't need to you act so rashly."_

_The seen changed and suddenly they were in the first year of middle school._

_Alicia glared at all of the boys trying to approach her sister._

"_Sis, I can defend myself." Hailey frowned a little. "What if I actually want to say yes?"_

"_I have to make sure whoever you go out with is a good one!" Alicia argued stubbornly._

"_Doesn't my opinion matter?"_

_Alicia turned away, but not before she saw the hurt look in her sister's eyes. "I have to protect you."_

_The scene changed again. Alicia could barely tell that it was in their second year of middle school._

_Hailey was talking to some boy. Alicia didn't like it. They were smiling and laughing. They hadn't noticed Alicia watching them._

_Suddenly the boy took one of Hailey's hands._

_Alicia was sure that Hailey was going to pull away, but the two continued smiling and walked off together, with their fingers still entwined._

_Darkness surrounded Alicia. _

_She was alone and no one was with her. _

_A spotlight lit up and revealed the form of her twin. Alicia called out her name and Hailey started to turn. Hailey smiled and started to take a step toward her sister, but suddenly a car sped out of the darkness and hit Hailey._

_Alicia ran forward and tried to get to her sister's side, but it felt like she was running through tar. While she ran, Hailey started sinking into the black ground. And just when Alicia was finally able to make it to Hailey, her sister had sunk through the dark footing and seemed to be floating down into the darkness._

_Alicia yelled and hit the floor with all her might, but Hailey kept sinking until the darkness swallowed her up._

_Now Alicia was all alone. She pulled her hands up to her face and cried._

_She was afraid._

_She didn't want to be alone!_

_Someone save her! She didn't like this vacuum, this emptiness._

_She didn't want to be left behind…_

_Would no one come?_

_Where was Hailey?_

_Hailey was always there for her wasn't she?_

_So why was she alone now?_

_Why?..._

"_Risa-chan."_

_What was that? Was someone calling her name? But she didn't recognize that version._

"_Risa-chan."_

_No wait! That was her new nickname. But who was calling her? The voice was familiar…and warm…_

"_Risa-chan!"_

* * *

><p>Alicia sat up with a start, pulling out her gun and panting a little. She looked around quickly to determine her situation, pointing her gun at anyone nearby. She saw Yamamoto kneeling close by and Gokudera standing slightly behind him. Tsuna was right next to her with his hand still on her shoulder. "Wh-wha…?" Alicia breathed out in relief. She lowered her weapon and placed it back into its holster.<p>

"Risa-chan?" Tsuna kept his hand on her shoulder.

Alicia ignored the boy, instead she pulled one knee up and hugged it, folding her other leg around her ankle slightly. She raised a hand and covered one of her eyes. "It's been a while since I last saw that dream," she muttered to herself quietly.

Tsuna frowned a little. He had heard what Alicia had said. "Risa-chan, what's wrong?" He asked in concern. Her eyes held something dark and painful.

Alicia didn't look up right away, but when she did her eyes looked a little dull. "Nothing's wrong. What made you think that?"

Tsuna didn't need his hyper intuition to tell that she was lying. He frowned a little bit more. "You were shaking and whimpering in your sleep. You were also frowning a lot."

Alicia averted her eyes to avoid eye contact. "I was just remembering something. That's all. I can get over it." Her eyes darkened once more. Something was bothering her. Alicia had this sense of foreboding ever since she came to the future. But she couldn't put her finger on what. She groaned a little in frustration and shook her head. She would think about it later. Alicia finally turned her attention back to the other boys. "In any case, how has lighting your ring gone? Did I miss the chance to watch Lal beat you up a little?"

Tsuna deadpanned. Was that the reason Alicia came to watch? However, he was relieved. She seemed to be back to normal now. "I was able to light my ring," Tsuna informed her with a smile.

Alicia yawned a little. "I already knew you would, but good job anyway." She smiled a little and ruffled the brunette's hair, making him blush form embarrassment. '_Probably from the praise and the female contact,_' Alicia reasoned.

"Stupid gun-freak! How dare you worry Juudaime like that!" Gokudera yelled. He had kept silent because he was also worried a little about the girl, but she seemed perfectly fine now.

"So noisy." Alicia turned away with indifference. Gokudera took offense and continued to yell some more.

Lal looked down and sighed in relief. She had been a little worried as well from the pained look Alicia had while sleeping. But now she seemed perfectly fine. But she was human, even the seemingly immortal Dimenticato had their nightmares. She tilted her head back up to look at the group. "Now, we're finally going to open this box."

Alicia ignored the group as they continued with Lal's trial. She stood up and stretched with another yawn to work out the stiffness in her muscles for sleeping on the floor.

"So what was that all about?" Reborn asked.

"Nothing important," Alicia muttered as she re-tied her hair.

"It didn't look that way to the rest of us," the small hitman pressed.

Alicia shrugged. "I'm human as well Reborn. Aren't I allowed to have bad dreams?"

Reborn frowned a little, but didn't push any further. He and Alicia turned their attention back to Lal, who was starting to explain how to open a box.

"When a box cannot be opened, there are two reasons. Either the flame is weak or the attribute is mismatched."

"Attribute?" Tsuna confirmed?

"There are nine types of flames emitted by rings, just like the Vongola Rings," Lal continued to explain. "They are categorized as: Sky, Storm, Star, Sun, Cloud, Moon, Mist, Thunder, and Rain. The boxes are also categorized into these nine types. If the ring does not match the box's attribute, it will not open."

"Kind of like a key," Yamamoto stated as he studied his ring.

"Hey, hold on a sec. Yamamoto's future self didn't say anything like that," Gokudera said grumpily as he folded his arms. "He said something about waves."

"The waves in the human body are the energy which is necessary for the rings to emit a flame," Lal clarified. "Waves are also categorized into nine types, like the rings and boxes. The power and balance of each person's waves are determined individually at birth."

"Eto," Yamamoto rubbed the back of his head, confused and overwhelmed by the amount of information flowing in. "What does that mean?"

"You lost us halfway through," Tsuna said, also lost.

Lal stayed emotionless. "Waves, rings, and boxes; unless you all three are the same type, the box won't open."

"Meaning, since I have storm flames, I can use storm rings and boxes," Gokudera confirmed with a bored look.

"Then I'm rain," Yamamoto stated calmly.

"I'm sky," Tsuna added.

"That's right," Lal said.

"Then that box doesn't have a storm or rain attribute," Tsuna analyzed out loud.

"It wouldn't open with my mist attribute ring either," Lal said as she held up her hand for them to see her rings. "Next it's Sawada's turn."

"But what if it isn't sky attributed?" Tsuna asked uneasily.

"No worries there Tsuna," Alicia said with a confident grin. It put Tsuna a little more at ease.

"Among the attributes, the Sky is the only one which can open all boxes," Lal explained.

"Well, all of the main set of boxes anyways," Alicia corrected. But her words only earned her three confused looks. She sighed before clarifying what she meant. "The sky attribute is able to open only seven of the nine flames Lal mentioned. Star and Moon flame attribute boxes will still remain closed."

"That is they Sky's advantage," Lal continued. "There are only a few who have the sky attribute."

"Tenth, you really are special!" Gokudera exclaimed excitedly.

"Way to go Tsuna!" Yamamoto cheered.

Alicia smirked and ruffled the brunette's hair again.

Tsuna was slightly embarrassed from the praise.

"However it is not the rarest form of flame attribute." Lal drew their attention once again. "Moon and star flames are the rarest for of wave energy. Most don't even count them because of that."

"Eh? What do you mean?" Tsuna questioned.

Lal glanced over at Alicia, but the girl looked like she wasn't going to be the ones to spill the beans. "There have only been a count of four people who have had moon flames and only three who have actually had star flames. And all of them have come from the Perduto e Dimenticato Famiglia. They are also the only ones who have any extensive knowledge of the Star and Moon flames."

"No way," Tsuna whispered. He turned toward Alicia to check to see if Lal's words were true. But Alicia just grimaced a little.

"I think that is enough about my sister's and my flames now, Lal Mirch," Alicia said softly. "I would prefer that you keep any other knowledge you have about us to yourself. I will take my leave, goodnight."

The group watched as Alicia walked out of the room. She looked distracted and tense. But she really should have remained with the group so that she could continue censoring Lal's explanations.

"What is known about their flames?" Reborn prompted.

Lal studied the small hitman for a bit before continuing. "Star and Moon flames are said to be able to grow stronger if certain conditions are met."

"What would that be?" Tsuna asked.

"For some reason the person must be from the Dimenticato family. They must also be a set of two siblings, one with star flames and the other with moon flames. One must also bear the 'core' of the 'Night Curse', and so far this has turned out to be the star flame user. But there are only two written accounts where all of the conditions have been met. Once during Vongola Primo's time and the other during Vongola Decimo's reign"

"Eh! Mine!" Tsuna exclaimed, pointing to himself.

"Hailey and Alicia," Reborn informed the teenagers. This confirmed his suspicions. Now he really had to make sure he figured out what those twins knew. They were important resources, so he couldn't just let them die so early.

"There's more, but I owe Alicia and Hailey enough where I'll allow them to be the ones to tell you." Lal pointed to the box once more. "Now, go ahead and try opening the box."

* * *

><p>Kyoko peeked around the corner.<p>

No one was there.

She felt bad, but she had to go look for her brother!

She jogged a little till she cleared the strange purple laser thing. She paused and looked around what looked to be an empty garage. She say the door at the other end and was about to head off at a jog again.

"Just where do you think you're going?...Kyoko."

Kyoko stiffened and turned slowly.

Alicia was staring intently at her from her position of leaning against the wall with her arms crossed.

And Alicia did _not_ look happy.

* * *

><p><strong>Kyoko, you are in BIG trouble. What will Alicia do without Hailey there to censor her? And what is that secret Lal is keeping for the twins? Who was that boy with Hailey? Oh the mystery!<strong>

**Despite the slow movement, I think this chapter went pretty well! Tell me what you thought!**

**REVIEWS are much appreciated!**


	20. Chapter XX

**Alright! 20 chapters! I'm so excited! I'm going on vacation for a while and I just finished my finals, and I was feeling quite happy, so I whipped this up for all of you to read since I won't be able to update for at least a week otherwise.**

**Thanks to AccessBlade, Blueberryxn, HikariNoTenshi-San, and 10th Squad 3rd Seat for reviewing!**

**I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

><p>Chapter XX<p>

Alicia stared at Kyoko with a cold expressionless face.

"I was just…" Kyoko trailed off. Her eyes flickered to the other side, like she was contemplating the idea of making a run for it. But her knowledge of Alicia's athletic ability cut that thought before it went very far.

"Just… what?" Alicia pressed. Her stare nearly boring holes into the other girl.

"I…I…" Kyoko looked like she was about to burst into tears. She was desperate to find her brother. Ryohei was everything to her. But at this rate, she wasn't even going to get the chance!

Alicia sighed and pushed herself away from the wall. Unfolding her arms, she place one on her hip and ran the other hand through her bags as she walked over and stopped in front of the other girl. "You just wanted to find your big brother, correct?"

The orange haired girl nodded tentatively.

"You do realize that by going out there all alone, not only will you be putting yourself in danger, but Tsuna and everyone else as well."

"Well I-"

"And by running out there when you are incapable of fighting, you are disgracing your brother. Don't you trust in his strength?"

"I do! But-"

"There are even more bad men out there than before searching for all of us, and yet you still wish to do something as foolish as running out of this safe hold?"

"But-"

"No matter what you do, the moment you step outside of this base you will be captured. Then Tsuna and everyone else will probably have to risk their lives to get you back. Most likely many of them will get severely in the process. _One of them might die_!"

Kyoko bowed her head in shame. "I just…" She couldn't help it, she started to cry.

Alicia rolled her eyes. She couldn't believe she was about to do this, but…"I'll go with you."

Kyoko looked up and blinked in surprise. "What?"

"Unlike you, I can fight those people quite easily. So I'll go with you, and protect you so that Tsuna doesn't have to worry."

Kyoko just stood there, unsure of how to react. Then slowly, a smile started to appear and she jumped up and hugged the other girl. "Thank you so much Risa-chan!"

Alicia sighed again. "Come on." She grabbed Kyoko's wrist and pulled her forward at a jog. "We can't go to your house because it's surrounded with the enemy. However I can take you to someone who can tell you about your brother. Is that good enough?"

"Un." Kyoko said with a nod and an excited smile.

"We have to hurry because I want to get back before everyone is up. That's my condition to taking you out of there without permission, okay?" Alicia looked back at the other girl. Kyoko nodded again. "Alright then."

* * *

><p>Alicia peeked around the corner. Once she was sure it was safe she turned back to motion to Kyoko to follow her. The two quickly made their way up to one of the houses.<p>

Kyoko took a quick glance at the nameplate as she passed through the gate. "This is Hana's place!"

Alicia nodded curtly and tugged on Kyoko's arm to signal that they should knock on the door. Hana was shocked at first, but quickly got over it as she ushered the two younger girls inside her house. After a teary and heartfelt reunion, Kyoko and Hana went off to Hana's room to discuss the older Sasagawa's situation. Meanwhile Alicia stood by the window to keep a lookout. She didn't bother to listen to their conversation. Not because she already knew what they were going to say, but because she really didn't care and if she _did_ want to know, then she could as Hailey later.

After a while, she decided that it was time that they left before they overstayed their welcome and drew some dangerous figures. "Kyoko, we should get going," The Black Panther said softly as she headed toward the entrance. Kyoko and Hana nodded, and followed her out of the room and over to their shoes.

"Thanks for accompanying Kyoko," Hana said as the two pulled on their shoes. "Knowing her, she would have come on her own if it meant finding her big brother."

Kyoko blushed, but couldn't deny her friend's words.

Alicia just shrugged and peeked out the door. "So far it's not so bad. Now if we can get back unnoticed, then it should be fine. Can you do me a favor though?"

"Sure," Hana nodded, "what is it?"

Alicia handed the older woman a folded piece of paper. "Just follow what's on there, and thanks."

Hana handed a bag of clothes and candy to her friend before giving Kyoko a hug one last time. After Alicia took one more sweep of the area, the two teenage girls headed off.

They were halfway back to the hideout entrance when their luck took a turn for the worse.

"Tch. Stay down and wait till I call for you alright?" Alicia whispered without looking toward the other girl. "No matter what, you must not come out of this hiding place okay?"

Kyoko nodded fearfully.

Alicia snuck out and took down one of the men from behind, instantly drawing a dozen pairs or eyes. She smirked. "Yo. Looking for me?" The moment the Millefiore grunts' focus zeroed in on her, Alicia made a run for it, drawing the enemy away.

The soldiers wasted no time in attacking. Alicia was trying not to fight with her ring and box weapon, but as reinforcements appeared, she had to start reconsidering her decision. She fought with the intention of moving the fight away from Kyoko. Taking time to dodge in the same direction or throw an enemy down the street and chase after them to finish them off.

"That is the Vongola's Moon Guardian! Capture her alive!" One of the higher ranked soldiers suddenly yelled.

"Oh?" Alicia dodged another blow and chopped the back of another opponent. "Why must I be captured _alive_? Weren't you aiming to kill all the members of Vongola?"

The man smirked. "Byakuran-sama has specifically requested that the Moon and Star guardians are captured and brought to him alive."

Well that was news to her. Alicia took down a few more opponents. Something was off. Only White Spell members would take that into consideration. The Black Spell would just fight her with the intention to kill. "Tell me," Alicia called out as she dodged and parried another couple of enemies. "Which are you, white or black spell?"

The man sniffed indignantly. "Don't associate us White Spell with those low class barbarians."

'_I didn't think I made any reference of putting them together._' The girl through sarcastically as she dodged another storm scythe. Alicia's sensing perked up and she jumped up into the air, barely dodging a storm dragonfly.

She deadpanned. '_How…lame…_'

Several more came at Alicia, forcing her to call out her flames. "Hey! Why does Byakuran need me and the Star guardian alive?"

"That is Byakuran-sama's business!"

"In other words, you don't know." Alicia managed to slice a couple dragonflies in half. The man spluttered and red splattered his face. "Well, I don't need to bother with any of you anymore then."

Alicia, now confident that she was a safe distance from Kyoko, pulled off the small chain and lit her ring, calling out her new guns. But as fate would have it, a young boy fell out of a tree that he was spying from. Alicia was able to catch the young child, but at the price of allowing a storm dragonfly to hit her wrist. Despite the pain, Alicia held on to the child, who had fainted from fright, and used her other hand to finish taking down her opponents.

She gently placed the child onto the porch of the house and ran off before more Millefiore members could arrive, her ring safely wrapped with the Mammon Chain once again. Alicia located Kyoko, who had obediently waited where she was supposed to, and the two ran off again. Alicia was very thankful when they were finally safely past the non tri-ne-sette radiation filter.

"Risa-chan, is your wrist alright?" Kyoko asked hesitantly and guiltily, since she was sure that that injury was her fault for making the other girl sneak out with her. She had spotted Alicia cradling her wrist while they were running back, but for the sake of keeping quiet so that they could stay hidden from the enemy as they made their way back, she had kept quiet.

"It's fine," Alicia muttered, but her smile was a little strained. She needed to use her sun flames, but Kyoko was with her and she had to go report to Tsuna and company first. Using the activation aptitude of her second flame would have to wait till she got some alone time.

"Are you sure?" Kyoko asked again.

Alicia tried to smile a little more to reassure the girl. After all, she didn't need any distractions. "I'm just fine." She waved her hand side to side in front of her, but winced a little as she moved the injured wrist, ruining her façade. "I'll take get my wrist bandaged properly after I take care of a few things."

"That's not it! Kyoko-chan is missing!" The two girls heard Haru yell. Alicia sighed and signaled to Kyoko to speed up a little.

"W-What!" Tsuna shouted in alarm.

"Calm yourself, Tsuna," Alicia said calmly as she and Kyoko entered the room. She had barely made it in time to stop her charges from panicking and making a reckless decision.

"Ah! Kyoko-chan!" Tsuna and Haru yelled. Haru immediately dove toward Kyoko and cried into her shoulder in relief.

"I was so worried!" The brunette girl sobbed. She pulled back a little and grabbed Alicia's hand. "Thank you for taking care of Kyoko-chan!"

Unfortunately for Alicia, Haru grabbed her injured hand. She pulled away quickly, hissing a little bit and pulling her arm close.

"Ah! Risa-chan, your wrist!" Tsuna yelled.

"I'm fine, it's just a small scratch." Alicia tried to smile, but ended up with more of a grimace.

"Risa-chan caught me when I was trying to sneak out. But when I refused to go back inside because I wanted to look for my brother, she offered to go with me. And while we were out, we almost got caught. So Risa-chan went out and drew them away," Kyoko explained guiltily.

"So you went outside, even though it was so dangerous?" Gokudera grumbled.

"I didn't think you were the type to act so recklessly," Yamamoto said softly.

"It's fine. Nothing major happened," Alicia said grumpily, still holding her wrist.

Lal stared at Alicia for a bit before speaking. "Why don't you just-"

Alicia shook her head. "Not now."

This made Reborn frown. He didn't like being in the dark about anything. But he would wait patiently till the other teenagers weren't around. Then maybe Alicia will be more willing to spill her secrets.

Tsuna frowned a little as well. Alicia was keeping so many secrets, and it made him wonder if she really trusted them. He wasn't even completely sure if she considered them to be her friends. But why did Lal know? Did this mean Reborn knew as well?

Alicia turned her attention back to the other two girls. "Why don't you two go back to the kitchen. I'm sure Lambo and I-Pin are getting hungry."

"Hahi! You're right! We should go make breakfast. Right Kyoko-chan?" Haru turned to the other girl.

"Un." Kyoko smiled and nodded. "Will you be coming to eat soon?"

The males nodded, but Alicia shook her head. "Count me out."

"Risa-chan, you haven't eaten anything in nearly two days," Kyoko reprimanded.

It frustrated Alicia that the girl was already over her guilt, but she kept her comments to herself. "I'm fine. You should get going."

The two pouted a little, but left.

Alicia turned to the Vongola's mecha-artist. "Giannini could you bring up the camera view from the east side of the shopping district?" She felt like she had seen something near the house of the young boy who got caught in her battle, but she was in too much of a hurry to get back to the hideout safely to investigate.

"Hai, Alicia-san!" Giannini tapped a few keys and brought up the footage onto the large monitor. The camera turned slowly as it surveyed the area.

"Hold it!" Alicia suddenly shouted. "Giannini, turn the camera back a few feet."

The mechanic hurriedly did what he was told, but when Alicia told him to stop he saw nothing but a normal empty neighborhood. "What is it Alicia-san?"

Alicia ignored him. "Can you zoom in about 61 percent?"

"Hai Alicia-san!" Giannini confirmed as he followed her request.

It was then that the group was able to see a necklace or perhaps a small pocket watch hidden inside a dog house.

Alicia hissed a little. "That has the Dimenticato insignia on it," she muttered.

"Huh?" Tsuna squinted at the screen, but could only make out the general shape and color. "How can you tell?"

"Because Hailey and I have one exactly like it," Alicia nearly growled. Why on earth was that doing there of all places. "I have to get to it immediately!"

"But we need to get to Hibari first!" Tsuna argued.

"Listen to Juudaime woman!" Gokudera yelled. "Hibird's SOS just went off, so we should take care of that first!"

"I'm a Dimenticato before I'm a Vongola! You guys can go take care of tonfa boy and I'll take care of that!" Alicia shouted back.

Tsuna shook his head vigorously. "We can't do that! You're already injured and what if you get hurt even more!"

Alicia was losing her patience. She felt like time was of the essence with finding that piece of jewelry. "I'm perfectly capable of fighting in this era, unlike all of you! The Black panther can take care of itself!"

"Then we'll break into groups," Lal said calmly. "One will go after Hibird and the other will follow Alicia."

"I'll pass," Alicia said in irritation as she turned around and started to walk out. But Lal reached out and grabbed her injured wrist making Alicia flinch and jerk her arm away.

"You're wounded worse than you imply and since you won't be using…that method, then you'll be better off with someone accompanying you," Lal said seriously. But there was a hint of concern behind her harsh tone.

"I don't think that's a good idea. These boys will have a better chance of survival if you all go together." Alicia's eyes flickered toward Yamamoto and Gokudera. She knew she should have jumped at the chance to keep the storyline the same, but she really didn't want to see any of them injured. Now that she was in this time and basically stuck with all of them 24/7, Alicia suddenly felt the need to protect them in every way possible.

"We can handle ourselves gun-freak!" Gokudera growled. "Like we told Juudaime earlier, Yamamoto and I have been training."

"You don't know anything!" Alicia snapped.

"What was that you stupid gun-freak! How dare you underestimate us!" Gokudera had to be held back by Yamamoto so that he didn't attack the female warrior.

"What if you run into Gamma, huh? An A rank officer is _way_ above your capability!" Alicia nearly yelled. "The most you kids can manage is a C rank officer!"

"We're not kids dammit! And the Vongola are strong! We can handle anything!" Gokudera argued.

"How conceited can you get! You know absolutely nothing about this time!" Alicia swore a little. "Why do I even bother! God, and I don't have time for this! I should just…" Alicia trailed off.

"Risa-san?" Tsuna question tentatively.

But said girl didn't seem to even notice the other boy. Alicia looked like she was contemplating something.

'_I could remove my Mammon Chain after I retrieve the watch and draw in Gamma. That way Gokudera and Yamamoto just end up fighting a couple lackeys at the shrine. I'm sure this wouldn't change the story too much, and I'll be able to prevent those two idiots from getting mauled. Then again, Tsuna is injured and I can't let Lal use up too much of her strength during this part. If I could get them to let me go on my own, then this would work better. And in any case I might be able to talk Gamma out of it since I did do a favor for Aria. That just might work._'

"That's it!" Alicia exclaimed as she smacked her palm sit the side of her fist, causing her to flinch and hold her injured wrist once again. "Itai! Damn it that hurts!"

The group stared at her with amusement, concern, and confusion. Reborn and Lal with the former and teenagers with the latter.

The girl's head snapped up suddenly as she turned her attention back to the other people in the room with her. There was a pause of silence then, "You'll never catch me alive!" Alicia yelled as she ran out of the room laughing.

The teenagers sweat dropped a little. Who knew Alicia could act so childish.

"Risa-san wait!" Tsuna shouted, reaching out for the girl with his uninjured arm, after shaking himself out of his initial shock about his female warrior friend's behavior. He whirled around to the mechanic. "Giannini, can you prevent Risa-san from leaving the base?"

"I don't think that's possible, Juudaime," Giannini said apologetically.

"Don't tell me," Gokudera grumbled, "one of the doorways is still being repaired?"

"Well yes, but that's not what I meant." The mechanic was sweating nervously slightly.

"Then what is it?" Lal asked impatiently.

"Well the twins had their portion of the base built under a different system. Hailey-san made it clear that she didn't want anyone, but herself to be able to control anything on that side," Giannini explained. "That and Alicia-san is already outside."

"WHAT!" Tsuna shouted.

They looked up at the monitor and, sure enough, Alicia was already jogging down a deserted road.

"Let her go, Tsuna," Reborn said calmly. "We know where she is going anyways. What you need to figure out now is if you four are going to do. Will you still split up or will you stay together."

"I still think some of us should go after Alicia to assist her," Tsuna said firmly.

Reborn smiled a little. "Alright then. You should decide how you want to split into groups."

"What should we do, Juudaime?" Gokudera asked.

"Eh?" Tsuna looked at his friend.

"Decide for us, Tsuna," Yamamoto reiterated.

"Eh? M-Me?" Tsuna said in shock.

"Of course you," Lal said coldly.

"You're the boss," Reborn said with a smile.

"That's…I decide…" Tsuna said hesitantly.

Gokudera was confident in whatever the brunette decided. "We'll just follow you, Juudaime."

"We'll leave it up to you, Tsuna," Yamamoto said, just as confident.

"Gokudera-kun, Yamamoto… Then I'll go too," Tsuna said assuredly. "We'll search after Risa-san and Hibird at the same time."

"If that's the tenth's plan, then I agree with it!" The silver haired storm guardian exclaimed excitedly.

Yamamoto placed his hands on his hips. "Now that it's decided, let's get ready."

After a quick discussion with Lal, the group decided to split into two teams of two. Yamamoto and Gokudera would go look for Hibird while Lal and Tsuna would pursue Alicia.

* * *

><p>Alicia swiftly and quietly lowered herself over the wall. After a quick look around, Alicia determined that the watch was no longer where she had seen it earlier.<p>

"Big sister, you're back!"

Alicia whipped around and saw the little boy pushing open the sliding glass door and running up to her. She didn't sense any malice or danger coming from the small child, but she kept up her guard just in case. "What do you want little one?" She asked cautiously. '_Oh great. Now I'm starting to sound like that jerk Hibari. I really need to get my mind straightened after this._'

"Big Sissy gave this to me and said that when I saw someone who looked like her, but with black hair, then I should give it to that Big Sister!" The boy smiled brightly and held up the small watch. "Big Sissy told me to tell you that she took her share already and that you should take the rest."

Alicia knelt down by the boy and smiled. She took the necklace and reached into her pocket, taking out some candy that she carried with her in case Lambo was getting too annoying or she needed to bribe the small cow child, handing to the little boy instead. "What's your name little one?" She asked as she ruffled his hair.

"My name is Aiden! And my mommy and daddy's name is Alison and Michael!" The boy told her excitedly.

Alicia's ears perked up a little. There was no way this could be… But even the youngest of the kids would be at least 20 by now, but still…

"Um…Is your last name…Kiyomizu, by any chance?" Alicia asked hesitantly. She wasn't really sure if she really wanted to know.

The little boy giggled. "That's right auntie!"

Alicia could have fainted. "Erg…let's stick with big sister…Auntie makes me feel old…"

Aiden giggled again. "That's what Big Sissy said. You better go now Big Sister. Maybe Mommy, Daddy, and I will get to see you again later. Bye, bye!" The little boy waved and ran off.

Alicia watched the small boy run off with a dazed expression. '_Oh god. I feel like I've aged a hundred years all of the sudden._' Alicia shook her head and stood up. She still had a job to do, but first…

* * *

><p>Yamamoto was finally able to get his message across to Gokudera and they were working together now. It seemed like they made a great team, and Yamamoto felt he was right in placing his trust in the other silver haired man. With one last swipe, using the eighth form of his Shigure Souen style, they were able to successfully take Lighting Gamma down.<p>

Yamamoto straightened with his free hand on his hip and sighed in relief. "We did it. I was a little worried," he said as Gokudera walked up behind him.

"Stupid. There's nothing to fear when you're here with Juudaime's right-hand man."

"Pft." Yamamoto broke out laughing.

"What's so funny?" Gokudera demanded.

"Nothing!" Yamamoto said with a smile. "I bet Tsuna and the others will be shocked when we tell them that we took an enemy boss down."

"Don't get elated by this," Gokudera said grumpily. He then folded his arms with a smug air. "Though I do have a duty to report to the tenth…"

Yamamoto smiled, glad that he was finally able to get through to the other teen. He was hopeful that they would be able to become friends now. A sudden aura of danger and the sound of electricity forced Yamamoto into alertness once more.

"Look out!"

The two teens were pushed out of the way just in time, barely missing the attack. They watched in shock as Alicia fell to the ground instead.

"Risa/Gun-freak!"

Alicia coughed a little and shakily pushed herself off the ground, panting. "That was a close one," she muttered to herself, then looked over at Gamma. "I guess you didn't take my bait, huh Gamma?" She winced a little from the residual shock. She hadn't been able to deflect all of the attack in her attempt to protect Yamamoto and Gokudera.

"H-How is he still standing?" Yamamoto asked.

"I may have been hurt by your sword if it had been enveloped in his dying will flame." Gamma smoothed back a few stray strands of hair.

"Not that much though, since your electric foxes were protecting you." Alicia crossed her arms and stared at the man.

"Well in any case, I have to finish all of you off," Gamma said with a shrug.

Alicia's eyes narrowed. "So you're not willing to negotiate. Even after everything my sister and I did for you in the past?"

"The key word is in the past," Gamma said with his suave and laid back smile.

Alicia ground her teeth. Her eyes flickered back to the other two boys. She didn't want them to get hurt, but she didn't want to let them know about Yuni or Aria either. But if she said that she helped Gamma's bosses, then she would be held under suspicion. "Let's move this fight somewhere else. I won't fight you with these kids hanging around and getting in my way."

"Fine with me," Gamma replied with a smirk. He was looking forward to taking the Black Panther on.

"Hold it gun-freak!" Gokudera yelled and ran over to her side. "We should fight together."

"Gokudera's right," Yamamoto agreed as he ran over to Alicia's other side.

"Get away from here! You'll just get in my way!" Alicia growled through her teeth. '_Damn it! I can't negotiate with these two around!_' But before she could do anything, the two boys charged toward Gamma once more. "Crap!"

Alicia sprinted forward and deflected Gamma's flame attacks with her moon flames. But having the two boys around was costing her. Using her moon flames took a great deal of the users' stamina and energy. But to keep the other two from taking on any serious damage, Alicia was forced to call upon her flames repeatedly.

Eventually Alicia collapsed onto one knee, panting heavily. Her guns had returned to her box and her flames were nearly depleted. This was not a good situation.

"So tell me," Gamma sat down on the ground, showing that he felt the greatest threat was already taken care of, "when did Vongola Decimo and the Black Panther come back to life? I really need to know the details."

"Because I am awesome like that," Alicia said sarcastically.

"Hmph, so you have no intention of answering seriously." Gamma closed his eyes for a second before looking back up, this time at the two teenage boys. "Shall I tell you why your attack didn't work?"

Alicia tuned out Gamma's explanation, since she was already well aware of his weapons and capability in battle.

"Now then, playtime is over. Your youthfulness was certainly surprising. But you're a member of the Vongola Family. A certain degree of information manipulation is to be expected. However…" the blond said as he stood up once more and became more serious. "If the tenth is alive, then this is no small matter."

Alicia's pupils contracted as she realized what Gamma was going to tell the two boys. "Wait! Don't say it!"

"Many of my comrades-"

"Shut up! Don't say anymore!"

"Watched him get-"

"No more!"

"Shot to death." Gamma finished, all the while ignoring Alicia's pleas.

The effect was immediate. Yamamoto became grave and the killing intent coming from hi spiked to an all-time high. Gokudera started shaking in anger. Both of them raised their weapons to try striking the man down for even mentioning the cruel death of their dearest friend.

"This was amusing, but now that I've worn down your shield, I think it's time to end this." Gamma sent out both of his Volpe and his billiard balls in an attempt to kill the two boys in one shot.

But the majority of the flames were pulled away, as if by a magnet, only sending the two boys to their knees and hands. All three males looked over to see Alicia barely standing and holding up a single hand, as if reaching for something.

Alicia had taken the brunt of the attack.

The girl smiled a little. "When the moon waxes and wanes, it can control the tides. But did everything I was supposed to… Good thing too, because that's my limit…" Alicia voice faded and she fell back to the ground. "I leave the rest to you tonfa boy," she muttered, to quiet for anyone else to hear. '_It seems I've changed a lot of things…Hailey's probably going to be really mad at me…_' Alicia thought tiredly with an inner chuckle before she fell completely unconscious.

"The Black Panther is forever impressing me it seems. But her choice to save you boys was in vain." Gamma turned back to Yamamoto and Gokudera, who were struggling to get to their feet. "You two really should have let her fight alone. She used up her flames defending you two, rather than attacking me. No matter, the result will still be the same. I'll put you two at ease. See ya."

Gamma's eyes widened suddenly and his foxes jumped behind him to defend their master from a powerful attack. An explosion went off and the area was covered in dust and smoke.

Hibari had appeared.

* * *

><p><strong>Extra<strong> - A favor for Hibari

Hailey was feeling quite happy today. Not only had she finished up her mission early, but she had a rare moment of quiet alone time. She plopped down on her couch, planning to do nothing at all.

That is, until Hibari walked through her door.

Hailey let out a huff of air, making her bangs fly up. "Is there something you need Kyoya?"

"I want you to assist me on a mission," Hibari said with his usual cold voice and expressionless face.

However those words can't possibly have come from him. The infamous _Hibari Kyoya_ asking for _help_!

No way.

Hailey must have heard that wrong. "Er...you need...what?"

"I'm not repeating, omnivore."

"Ah...I see...well...what do you need my... assistance with?"

Hibari explained the details of the mission.

"No can do!" Hailey said bluntly. She'd rather fight Hibari for a week than get stuck in that sort of mission. Hailey got up and was about to walk out of her room, but froze as Hibari started speaking again.

"Hailey Dimenticato: Patient for everything except fishing; fear of snakes; moderate to extreme arachnophobia (fear of spiders); unlike her sister, she kills nearly every plant she has ever touched; though has been to several balls and other evening events she is terrible at dancing; when fighting with a whi[, she ends up tangled instead; despite being a professional skier and snowboarder, she is incapable at ice skating-"

"I get it! I get it!" Hailey said hurriedly before the man could say anything else. "I'll help you on this mission."

A week later the two walked into the Vongola ball arm in arm. That day Hibari was finally able to attend without being crowded by stupid fan-girls.

* * *

><p><strong>I was missing Hailey a little, so I added that extra in! I thought it was kind of cute! I am also hoping this makes Hailey more appealing to some of the readers. However, I'm sure you'll be able to see her in a more...fragile state when she does come back into the story.<strong>

**Tell me how you thought this chapter went! REVIEW!**

** Also the poll is still up and will be till the middle of the Shimon arc!**


	21. Chapter XXI

**Hiya! I'm back from my vacation and I had a sudden burst of inspiration while I was on the plane on the way back! So when I got home I went straight to my room and started typing. Then I realized that I still had a few more days till Saturday and I got off my computer and went to bed...Just kidding!**

**Anyways I'm so excited that I have over a hundred reviews now! And I hope to get even more! Really, reviews are a big reason I don't procrastinate, and why I can get out a new chapter every week!**

**I want to say thank you to AccessBlade, sunstar13, peppermint twertle, dangerous ninga, HikariNoTenshi-San, Bishi-bishi, and 10th Squad 3rd Seat for all of the reviews! I think this is the most reviews I've ever gotten for one chapter and that made me super excited! I ended up writing down ideas for this chapter during my vacation so that I would do my best for you guys!**

**Okay, I'm rambling now. Anyways thanks for reading and I hope you review!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

><p>Chapter XXI<p>

He was in a horrible mood right now.

Not only was he called away from someone who, in his opinion, was more important. But he also had to take care of these little brats from his past, who didn't know how to listen to warnings. These boys were probably told by Alicia, who is from a powerful and knowledgeable informants group, that they should work together or not go out at all. But they didn't listen and now the sister of someone he cared about was lying, beaten to near death, outside of his entrance. Knowing these herbivores, they probably got in her way during the fight. And now he had to take care of their mess before he could return to his previous activity. All of this also added to the fact that they were disrupting the discipline in Namimori.

And that was the final straw.

He would still call this a favor so that, that person would owe him one later. But really this was for him. There was no way that he was going to allow anyone to continue disrupting the peace in Namimori.

As Hibari Kyoya, he would bite them all to death.

* * *

><p>Lal and Tsuna were finally at the base of the temple and running toward the shrine where Hibird's signal had disappeared. The slight smoke trail from the top worried them, so they picked up their pace.<p>

Tsuna prayed for his friends' safety. When he and Lal had finally made it to the spot where they had seen the necklace, the found a note left behind by Alicia instead.

_Flashback_

"_We finally made it!" Tsuna muttered in relief. A flash of white caught his eye. "Ara? What's this?"_

_The two walked over and saw a small makeshift doll holding a roll of paper. The doll had black hair and was rather crude, but what the two noticed most was that it had one hand pulling underneath the eye and sticking its tongue out. _

_Tsuna sweat dropped a little. Where on earth did Alicia learn to make that thing?_

_He sighed and pulled out the note:_

_Stupid Tsuna!_

_I told you to either stay back at the base or go with Yamamoto and Gokudera! I'll already be over there by the time you read this note. Hopefully I'll get there in time, but you should hurry. Your two idiot friends have a good chance of getting killed. Gamma is going over there, and there's no way the two of them can handle that guy yet._

_Don't freak out. They won't die. I can guarantee that much. However you should still hurry over. Someone important will be waiting there for you._

_Ciao,_

_Alicia xp_

_Tsuna didn't know whether to deadpan, feel exasperated, or to start worrying._

"_We should get going," Lal said firmly. "It took us longer to get here with the increase of Millefiore members flying around. If we want to make it to your friends in time then we should hurry."_

"_Will they get hurt?" Tsuna asked, more to himself than Lal but she answered anyway._

"_With Alicia heading there, I'm sure they'll be fine. As long as she's free to fight her way then, I think even the Alicia from your time should be able to handle Gamma."_

_Tsuna nodded, feeling a little bit better, and the two headed off toward the temple._

_End Flashback_

Lal and Tsuna ran through the trees, keeping to the shadows to avoid detection. Soon they were passing through bushes, almost at the clearing to the temple.

"Once we get through here…" Tsuna said, more to reassure himself than to point out the directions.

Behind a short stone fence, the two were able to see a giant, spiked, purple ball floating in the air. There also seemed to be a few clouds attacked to a few of the spikes, as well as a person, and a couple of yellow animals.

"That's…" Tsuna trailed off curiously. He looked down and noticed an older Hibari in a ready position to attack. He holding tonfas alit with purple flames.

"You're far too late," Hibari said coldly. He dashed forward and struck down the blonde man who was stabbed through the gut and shoulder from Hibari's box weapon.

Tsuna and Lal ran over to the older cloud guardian as he stood over the defeated Gamma. Tsuna was barely able to catch Hibari's comment of not needing a lightning attribute ring. Not that he completely understood what the man meant.

Hibari turned slightly and smirked at the younger version of the brunette man he had come to respect to a small degree. "What took you, Sawada Tsunayoshi?"

"Hibari-san!" Tsuna exclaimed, relived that he had found another of his friends, and that the older male was alright. But the absence of his other friends caught his attention. He looked around a bit, hoping that they would come out of the forest or something. But when they did not arrive, he turned back to Hibari, unsure of how to ask. Hibari was still as intimidating as ever, possibly even more so now that he was older. "Ano…?"

"Yamamoto Takeshi, Gokudera Hayato, and Dimenticato Alicia are in those woods," Hibari answered. Already knowing Tsuna would ask.

Tsuna ran ahead to see the fate that befell his friends. His heart rate sped up when he saw his two male friends unconscious and a suited male kneeling next to them. "Gokudera-kun! Yamamoto!"

The male looked up at the approaching teenager. "It's fine. Their lives aren't in danger."

Tsuna slowed to a stop next to the other male. "Y-You're…" Tsuna studied the other man and realized why he seemed familiar. "You were the vice chair of the Disciplinary Committee."

"Kusakabe Tetsuya. I'm Hibari's subordinate." Kusakabe looked back down at the two boys. "They only have a few minor injuries. However…" The pompadour turned as he looked over at another figure lying off to the side.

Tsuna followed his gaze and his heart nearly stopped.

Alicia was a mess. She looked like she was on death's door. There were cuts and burns all over her body. Her cloths were ripped and burned, leaving many holes. The material that was left was stained red. A thin stream of dried blood trailed from one corner of her lips to her chin. Even when she was unconscious, Alicia still looked pained.

Kusakabe walked over and picked the girl up carefully, so as to not agitate any of her injuries. "We need to get her immediate medical attention. Let's carry them back into the hideout."

Tsuna fell to his knees in shock and horror. "Risa-san, you…"

To everyone's surprise, Hibari walked over and took Alicia into his arms. He walked over to the side of the shrine and pulled out another ring, then walked forward and disappeared.

Tetsuya handed Lal the three rings before he and Tsuna, carrying Yamamoto and Gokudera, also walked through the secret entrance.

* * *

><p>Reborn sat next to Alicia's bed, waiting for the girl to wake up. He wanted to speak with her about how much she knew about the events to come. The young teenage girl seemed to have predicted that Gokudera and Yamamoto would encounter Gamma, however she was still taken down quite easily by the man. So did this mean that she was physically weak? But that couldn't be possible since Alicia had claimed that she and Hailey were trained to be able to take the Arcobaleno on. So that must mean that she had a time limit to her strength. A great deal of physical strength and flames could be used in exchange of using up a lot of energy.<p>

The door slid open and Reborn turned for a moment to look at the newcomer, already knowing that it was his pupil.

"How's Risa-san doing?" Tsuna asked as he walked over.

"She hasn't woken up yet," the hitman replied. He turned again to face his student again. "But you did well."

"W-What was good about it?" Tsuna countered.

"It was good," Reborn repeated. "The only way for us to survive the Millefiore is each of you to grow." Tsuna ground his teeth angrily, but Reborn continued anyways. "Something good should happen after a crisis like that."

"Risa-san's hurt!" Tsuna exclaimed angrily. "How can you say that?"

"Juudaime…"

Tsuna and Reborn looked around to see Gokudera and Yamamoto standing in the doorway. The two of them walked inside hesitantly.

"I'm sorry."

Tsuna smiled a little. "Gokudera-kun!"

"I'm sorry, Juudaime. It was all my fault. I think I've been really, really scared since I came to this world. I acted tough, fought Yamamoto, and then got in the way of Risa's fight."

"Gokudera-kun…" Tsuna muttered.

Yamamoto shook his head a little. "It's not just Gokudera. I said a lot of things to him that I shouldn't have. I also got in the way of Risa, even though she told us to stay out of her fight, and I'm sorry"

Tsuna looked down at his feet, ashamed. He hadn't realized how scared everyone else felt.

"Of course," Reborn reprimanded. "Kyoko, Gokudera, and Yamamoto are still kids."

"Ah! Stop reading my mind!" Tsuna exclaimed, embarrassed.

"You all lack experience. You're unstable. You let your blood get to your head, and because of that, you make painful mistakes."

"D-Did you really have to go that far?" Tsuna asked tentatively. But he couldn't deny Reborn's words, though that in itself made him feel more ashamed.

"But," Reborn continued, "all you have to do right now is avoid dying. You're greatest weapon is making these painful mistakes and growing dramatically because of them."

"Reborn…" Tsuna said softly, his eyes shimmering a little from the encouragement. But he shook the hitman's words off in his embarrassment. "I don't want to hear all that from a baby!"

"Arg, too noisy!" Alicia growled.

Tsuna looked around just in time to have a pillow hit him in the face.

Alicia sat up and stretched, also cracking her neck a little to relieve her joints. "Honestly, I'm never going to get a proper amount of sleep with these sappy feelings going through the air." She threw off her blankets and made to stand up.

"Ah! Risa-san, wait! You're injured," Tsuna exclaimed and tried to make her lie down again.

Key word was _tried_. Alicia just waved him away and started to unravel her bandages. "Calm down Tsuna. I'm perfectly fine. Sheesh, you guys worry too much."

The four started at the girl as she peeled off all her wrappings and revealed uninjured skin. As she tore off the last of them, Alicia stood before all of them looking as well as ever, like she had never been injured in the first place.

She looked down and flexed her fingers a little to test her mobility. She had used a lot of sun flames to heal herself quickly since she had already suspected that Reborn and Tsuna would be waiting by her bed for her to wake up. But that had also caused her to lose a lot of sleeping time in the process.

"But…how…" Tsuna trailed off, breaking Alicia from her thoughts.

"Whaddya mean how? Hailey and I told you, we heal fast. But damn! Remind me never to take a beating for you idiots again." Alicia rolled her shoulder. She continued speaking, but it seemed like she was ranting to herself now. "Jeez! And after I went to such lengths and practically told you that Gamma was going to find you guys. It would have been easier on me if I had just told you about his entrance. Then again, Gokudera and Yamamoto might not have learned their lesson if I did that."

"So you _did_ know about Gamma and Hibari's secret entrance," Reborn practically sang.

"Ugh," Alicia froze in her actions. She lowered her arms and glanced over at the small hitman, avoiding eye contact with Tsuna. "Well…I never said I _didn't_ know. I'm sure I've said this a great many times now, but Hailey and I know everything important dealing with Decimo and his guardians."

"But why would you let us go out if you knew all of that?" Tsuna demanded. He was growing rather angry and frustrated with the twins' secrecy. He just couldn't understand why they wouldn't tell them anything, even if they were in danger.

"I told you to stay in a group, and that I could handle myself." Alicia said indifferently and with a shrug. "I also tried to make Gamma chase after my ring signal instead, but Yamamoto and Gokudera ended up drawing his attention. Otherwise I could have negotiated something and avoided any fighting completely. Besides, there was an important lesson for the two of them to learn in all of this."

"Gokudera-kun and Yamamoto could have been badly hurt! _You_ could have died!" Tsuna snapped.

"Hmph! Excuse me, but I would have been fine if they hadn't gotten in my way." Alicia sighed. "If it was a one on one fight, then I could have managed, but I had plenty of leverage on Gamma. Now that's all gone to waste. That would have been a good time to use it too."

"Use what?" Reborn asked.

"Hm?" Alicia looked back down at the hitman. "Back in our time I did a favor for someone important to Gamma, but since I can't give you guys any details about that or risk breaking the Omerta. That's why I asked you two to leave." Alicia sent a pointed glare at Yamamoto and Gokudera.

"But what if he had attacked you, or if back-up came?" Tsuna argued.

Alicia waved his words away. "It would have been easier for me to fight him on my own. Hailey and I work better as individual fighters. I ended up focusing all of my energy into defending others rather than using it to attack. Blocking and drawing flame generated attacks use up more energy, so I had to take on physical damage in exchange for preventing those two from taking on any critical hits."

"You could have died!" Tsuna exclaimed again.

"Dying? What a strange concept. Though I would like to see them try," Alicia said quietly, her eyes darkening with the thought of her secret.

Tsuna wanted to ask Alicia to explain what she meant, but she blinked and the moment was gone.

Alicia placed a hand over her mouth as she yawned. "Man. I ended up using so much energy because of all of this. I'm going to go to sleep now. I really wish I was back in my own bed though…" Alicia was about to leave the room, but was blocked by a strangely calm Hibari.

"Hey, are you through?" He asked, using a hand to support him against the doorway. "I need to talk to you."

"Hibari-san!" Tsuna exclaimed.

"Yo, bigger tonfa boy!" Alicia said with a blank face. She raised a hand in a half-hearted wave. She tried to get around the man so that she could leave, but Hibari just walked forward, forcing her back into the room.

"Hibari!" Gokudera yelled. "What are you doing here?"

"Gokudera-kun, Hibari-san saved all three of you," Tsuna turned to the silverette and explained.

"Pardon," Alicia interjected, "But bigger tonfa boy had nothing to do with saving me."

"I didn't set out to save them though," Hibari said coldly, completely ignoring Alicia's comments. "I just didn't like that guy."

Reborn stood up and turned to fully face the older prefect. "I've wanted to see you, Hibari."

"Same here, infant," Hibari said with a small smile.

"W-What did you need to talk about Hibari-san?" Tsuna couldn't help but stutter a little in the presence of the older prefect. Hibari turned to Tsuna, intending to tell him the information he had found, but was interrupted by Giannini.

"Excuse me," the mechanic called hesitantly from the doorway. "May I have a moment."

"What is it?" Reborn asked.

"I have good news," Giannini said, coming out from behind the door now that he was sure that it safe. "Bianchi-san and Fuuta-san, who had gone out to gather information, has returned."

Tsuna started a little. "Fuuta!"

"Sis?" Gokudera asked, surprised and a little relieved, not that he would ever admit it.

Reborn's smile grew a little more. "I told you. Good things happen after a crisis."

Just then the door opened up again, this time revealing Bianchi, who looked exactly the same.

"Reborn!" The pink haired lady exclaimed and ran forward. She hugged the little infant and nuzzled her cheek against his own. "I'll never let you go again, my dear!"

"It can't be helped, Tsuna-ni," Fuuta said softly as he too entered the room.

"Great, even more people," Alicia said sarcastically. "What's it gonna take to get some god damned peace and quiet around here!"

Fuuta chuckled and pulled the teenage girl into a hug. "I'm so happy to see you again, Risa-nee. We've all missed you so much. In this era, you three are dead."

"C-Could you be…" Tsuna studied the mad a little more as he let go of Alicia and turned to face him. "Fuuta!"

Bianchi came over and gave Alicia a one armed hug, since she was carrying Reborn with her other arm. "I'm happy to see you again as well, Alicia."

Alicia eyed the older woman suspiciously, still wary of any possible attacks. "Nice to see you two again as well. You look…exactly the same age as when we first met…"

Bianchi smiled brightly. "Thank you!"

Fuuta held out a hand to compare their height. He laughed a little at this. "All right! I'm taller than you."

"You've grown way to tall!" Tsuna exclaimed. He paused when a small sob caught his attention. He looked around and saw Alicia on her hands and knees, in a state of total depression.

"Tall, so tall. This is depressing. Since when did I get so short? What is this make Alicia a shrimp day? Horrible, depressing, Why am I so much shorter now?" Alicia mumbled. The others could practically see the stream of tears coming from her eyes. A strangled cry snapped her back to reality.

Gokudera had fallen to the floor with a stomach ache from seeing his sister's face.

"Ah, Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna called out in concern.

Alicia took this time to sneak out of the room since she already knew everything the three wanted to report.

* * *

><p>"Is everyone here?" Reborn asked when they had gathered in the meeting room.<p>

Alicia grumbled silently and sent nasty glares at Reborn, who had stopped her on the way back to her room and dragged her to the meeting.

"Well then, I'll be Hibari's replacement," Kusakabe spoke up. "First, we flew Hibird because of a request from Kurokawa Hana."

"Eh? From Kurokawa Hana?" Tsuna repeated to confirm.

"That's right. It was a request from Kurokawa but," Kusakabe looked over at Alicia. "It was a requested of her by Alicia-san."

"And this is where I take my 'not suspicious' exit," Alicia said and started walking out of the room.

Tsuna deadpanned.

"Risa-nee," Fuuta said softly.

But Alicia clamped her hands over her ears and squeezed her eyes shut. "I see nothing! I hear nothing!" She ran the rest of the way out of the room.

Many of the occupants sweat dropped from her childishness, but Kusakabe nodded, like he had been expecting this reaction, and continued with his explanations.

* * *

><p>Their meeting came to an end and Fuuta and Bianchi were about to leave when the door slid open.<p>

Alicia came striding into the room, looking agitated. She strode over to the mechanic, ignoring everyone else. "Giannini, do you know anything about my sister?"

"Hm? Why?" The short, round man inquired.

Alicia uncurled a fist and held up a crumpled letter. "You should ask the Vongola mechanic about your sister, before it's too late! Why does it say that?"

Everyone turned to the mechanic in alarm.

He sighed. "I see then." He got up and typed a sequence of buttons into a panel next to the television screen. "Hailey-san said you would ask about her around this time. She said to show you this video when you did. I haven't seen it yet, but she said someone would explain everything for her."

The screen flashed a little as it turned on, and then a person smiled softly down at all of them. "Hey there. Long time, no see."

"No way," Alicia muttered under her breath. She couldn't believe who she was seeing.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Extra<strong> _– "Now as Vongola Decimo, go out on a mission and discover your true feeling's while you're at it."

* * *

><p>Tsuna sighed quietly for the umpteenth time as Gokudera peered around the corner of the wall. He, Yamamoto, Gokudera, and Alicia were on a mission to infiltrate a rival family's headquarters.<p>

Hailey had given them information that there was a leak in the Vongola, and even though she had already dealt with the culprit, they needed to attack the family before they tried to attack the Vongola. This particular family was known to be play cruel and underhanded tricks to defeat their opponents, so it was up to them to prevent the enemy family from attacking the innocent.

But Tsuna wasn't thinking about any of that right now. Actually he was thinking of someone else entirely.

His gaze drifted back up to the person in question, who was gliding stealthily over the rafters in the large room. Seeming to sense his gaze, the person looked over and made eye contact. The person sent Tsuna a swift, reassuring smile, then turned their attention back to the enemy mafia members moving about below her.

Tsuna frowned a little at his quickening heartbeat and the heat blooming on his cheeks.

He just couldn't understand this feeling. Just what was it about that person was making him react like this?

When he was with Kyoko he felt like a blubbering idiot. He would blush and stutter, but around that other person he felt comfortable and safe.

Kyoko made him feel happy and excited, but around that other person he could laugh as well as fight alongside them.

Kyoko would place a gentle hand on his shoulder and try to make him feel better when he was down, even if she never truly knew why he was upset in the first place.

That other person would slap him upside the head and tell him not to be a pansy, then ruffle his hair and help him get through the problem step-by-step.

That other person and Kyoko would laugh when Reborn dangled him off the roof of a tall building, but then that person would offer him a helping hand with a grip strong enough to let him know that she wouldn't let him fall.

Kyoko would sit at home and worry if he had been kidnapped. That other person would come in, guns blazing, and beat the shit out of anyone stupid enough to threaten his life. Then she might hit him a few times and yell at him for making her worry and have to save him in the first place.

Kyoko was like the spring, always smiling. This other person was usually grumpy, and most of her smiles were mischievous or because someone was getting hurt. But when she _did_ truly smile it was beautiful and made him feel like the world was just right as he watched her eyes sparkle in amusement.

Kyoko was like the sun.

But Alicia… what was Alicia?

* * *

><p>The feeling of a friendly gaze caught Alicia's attention. She looked around and saw Tsuna staring up at her. There was something strange about the look in his eyes. It was like he was pondering something.<p>

Her eyebrow twitched a little, but she didn't allow herself to frown. Perhaps Tsuna was feeling nervous, so instead she flashed him a smile, then returned her attention to the enemy worms moving around below her.

She couldn't let her concentration slip now. She played a vital role in this attack.

Even though she could still feel Tsuna watching her, she couldn't let herself to focus on that confusing male.

For some reason, ever since they entered high school, Alicia had been getting this weird fluttery feeling in her gut when she was around the boy. She had never felt this strange feeling in either of her lives, so she was frustrated. It only got more annoying when she had to fight a blush whenever Tsuna complimented her, or patted her on the arm or head, or whenever he stood too close…

An angry tick popped on Alicia's forehead.

She asked Hailey once what that feeling was, but something told her that she should keep the person in question to herself. Her sister had chuckled a little, though the look in her eyes was rather sad, then walked off saying that Alicia had to figure it out on her own, but not before breaking out into a full hardy laugh as she walked away…

Okay, now she was pissed. Good thing the time to implement the plan was coming along soon. Beating the crap out of these idiots would serve as a good place for stress relief.

Just then the don of the enemy family came out of a side office.

Alicia smirked and gave the signal. It was time for the attack.

* * *

><p>Alicia and Tsuna felt like they had taken down hundreds of men, and yet, more of them seemed to be coming.<p>

And if that situation didn't seem bad enough, the enemy had started a self-destruct countdown.

Too cliché right? Not for this family!

The Vongola members felt truly sorry for these soldiers. They were ordered to fight the Vongola to the death and risk being blown up with them or be gunned down outside for letting the Vongola escape. Unfortunately, this meant that Tsuna and the rest had to knock out the soldiers and leave them to die.

Finally they finished taking down the men, but now they were stuck with another problem. There were enemies waiting to gun them down outside.

"Juudaime!" Gokudera shouted. "There's an unprotected exit over here!"

The other three looked up and smiled. This was great. They were going to make it out after all. They all followed Gokudera as they were lead outside. Or, at least they tried.

The Don himself stepped out of the shadows as the four neared the exit.

"If you want a job done right, then you got to do it yourself," he said gruffly. He smirked and pulled out a gun.

Alicia pulled out one of her own and counted the enemy Don's bullets perfectly with her own. Stray bullets were sliced away by Yamamoto. Eventually the both of them ran out.

The man grimaced and pulled out a couple of brass knuckles instead. "It'll be more fun to hear your skull get crushed anyways."

'_Not good,_' Alicia thought to herself as she dodged a series of punches. '_We only have four minutes left before this place blows!_'

"Alicia! Get down!"

The eighteen year old girl ducked and Tsuna flew over and engaged the other Don.

"Get out of here!" Tsuna shouted, not looking at the other three. "I'll be right behind you."

"What!-" Alicia started to protest, but Yamamoto and Gokudera each grabbed an arm and hauled her off.

"We'll be waiting outside, Juudaime!" Gokudera shouted back.

"Make sure you hurry, Tsuna!" Yamamoto added with a grin.

"Let go of me, you idiots!" Alicia shouted as she kicked her legs and struggled. Something was worrying her. It felt just like the day Hailey had died in their first life. And that feeling scared her. She had to go back. She had to stay with Tsuna!

Alicia finally pulled away and took off running. She didn't look behind her to see if Yamamoto and Gokudera were following. She didn't care, as long as she got to see Tsuna.

She rounded one last corner and saw Tsuna take a kick. The force sent him flying back and into the wall, making a sickening crunch.

Anger took over her senses and her vision was colored red.

Alicia ran forward while calling out her flames, then landed a roundhouse kick right into the enemy Don's gut. Just before she hit, the Don's eyes widened a little and stared at Alicia in fear and horror and just like he had previously done to Tsuna, he was sent flying backwards, except he burst through the wall and through a few more walls after that.

Without a second thought, Alicia ran over to Tsuna's side. After a quick check over to make sure nothing was broken, she grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the exit.

One minute.

They sprinted as fast as they could down the hall. But the pessimistic and realistic calculation portion of Alicia's brain was running around in circles while repeatedly screaming '_YOU'RE NOT GOING TO MAKE_ _IT_'.

But since Alicia's whole day was going like a cliché/stupid/ridiculous action movie, she and Tsuna were just barely able to make it out of the building and thrown to the ground from the dissipating shockwave.

Tsuna looked down and noticed that both of them had an arm around each other in an attempt to protect the other. Alicia pushed herself up into a sitting position, and Tsuna mimicked her actions. But before he could make the attempt to stand, he was tackled back to the ground.

"Wh-Wha-?" Tsuna looked down and saw the top of Alicia's head, her face buried into the crook of his neck. His hyper intuition was telling him that she was crying, but when Alicia pulled back his sight begged to differ.

"You idiot! You should have let me help you fight that guy! You are obviously tired! What if you had gotten killed?" Alicia shouted as she shook Tsuna roughly by the collar. "If you _ever_ do something that stupid again, so help me I'll kill you myself you big stupid idiot!"

Alicia stopped shaking Tsuna and just glared at the young man, panting a little from her little burst of emotions.

Tsuna wasn't sure how to react. When Alicia had stopped shouting at him, he was clearly able to see the tears lining her eyes. And perhaps out of instinct, he pulled the girl forward into another hug. "I'm sorry for worrying you," he muttered softly into her ear. Tsuna smiled a little. He had finally figured it out. If Kyoko was the sun, then Alicia was the air. He needed her more than anything. So that must mean that he loved her.

Alicia just nodded and clutched the folds in Tsuna's shirt on his chest, trying her hardest not to break into tears. '_That was just as bad as the thought of Hailey dying. This is bad. How could I of let myself fall in love with this troublesome fool, especially when all I'm going to do is hurt him in the end?_'

* * *

><p><strong>That...was a really long extra...<strong>

**So~ how was it! Can you guess who it was on the video? And what could that person possibly have to say! I hope this met your expectations! Thanks for reading!**

**Please REVIEW! Thanks!**


	22. Chapter XXII

**Hi there! Guess what? I'm alive, yay! I have an explanation for this greeting. You see, every year when the winter holidays roll around and my family makes the unfortunate decision to stay home, I realize just _how __much_ I value my life. That, dear reader, is because I have a horde of cousins who come and love me to death, for reasons I don't know. Good, right? _ Wrong_! They don't want to share my attention so I get pulled in seven different directs or I'll be forced to carry three at a time while two hangs onto my legs, ugh.**

**But I hope you can understand now as to why this update took so long. Not only did I get volunteered for babysitting without my knowledge (though, by now I really should see it coming), but I also needed recovery time, then the writing time as well.**

**I hope you enjoy this chapter. Please review!**

* * *

><p>Chapter XXII<p>

"I guess it's been a while, huh?" Hailey said with a soft smile.

"I can't believe it… Hailey was here all along?" Alicia muttered.

Reborn smirked. "I thought so."

Everyone else stared at the television in shock.

Hailey opened her mouth to continue, but a new head popped onto the screen.

"Hiiiiiiii Aliiiiiciiaaaaa Deeeeeaaaaarr~!"

Alicia deadpanned. "What it that idiot doing there?"

Hailey almost visibly sweat dropped. "Uuuh…Hey there Jared…"

Suddenly a fist collided with that person's head, sending him out of the screen. "Stay out of the video you idiot! What if you say something important that you're not supposed to!"

"And Mark…" Hailey laughed nervously.

"Oh it's alright," the 'Jared' person called from wherever he had landed. "Hailey can just delete that section of the video!"

"Actually," Hailey interjected, "no I can't. This video is being saved to my encrypted file as it roles. So whatever you say here, everyone else will see."

"You see!" The younger man, apparently named Mark, said pointedly.

"Fine~, fine~," Jared sang with fake sincerity. "I just wanted to say hi to our cute little Alicia!"

'_It's a video. It's a video. It's a video. You can't kill him. You can't kill him. You can't kill him!_' Alicia was shaking with anger.

"You're such a moron," the younger man muttered.

"Um…Mark, Jared. Can you be quiet now? I kind of need to finish making my video." Hailey waited for the two to agree before continuing. "Okay, well if all the boys from my time are there, then that means Lal was able to get my message and Yamamoto, from this time, took my advice. I'm glad you're all safe. Though, if I'm correct, then Alicia made a few changes. If so, the group watching this video should consist of Tsuna, Reborn, Bianchi, Fuuta, Kusakabe, Giannini, Alicia, Lal, Yamamoto, and Gokudera." Hailey's smile faded and she lowered her head a little with a sigh. "Now, I know what you're all thinking… Amazing office, right!" Her head snapped back up and she had a wide smile plastered on her face.

The majority of the room deadpanned.

"Not you too, Hailey," Alicia groaned.

"Yup, and this is really all thanks to Alicia!" Hailey continued. "This was all paid by her, in a way. Well with all the bets I won, I saved it up and was able to build this office entirely with all of her money! But this is the most of my room, or the Dimenticato wing of the hideout, that you'll ever get to see!" Hailey chuckled, but quickly sobered up.

She sighed again. This time the others were able to notice how much more tired, and weary looking Hailey appeared to be.

"Sorry…I just felt like I should start on a lighter note…" Hailey folded her hands together on top of her desk. "This is the secret the Yamamoto from this era was keeping from you guys. And if you're watching this video…then that means… I failed."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Stop the video Giannini." Alicia waited for the man to pause the video record Hailey had left behind. "Did you already know Hailey was here?" She demanded.

Gianni shook his head. "About a year ago, before Hailey died, she said that a file made by her would be sent to my computer. It only arrived last month."

Alicia frowned. Sure, Hailey would plan ahead for everything. But, why did it sound like even _she_ didn't see this coming?

While Alicia was still pondering, Lal spoke up. "We should continue watching the message."

Giannini nodded and pressed play.

"I must ask that even if Alicia asks for you to stop the video again, that you allow this message to keep playing." Hailey chuckled a little. "I know you better than anyone sis, so I'm 99 percent sure that you just made Giannini pause this. But please don't do that anymore unless I tell you to."

Tsuna was shocked, and a little impressed, that Hailey was able to guess where Alicia would ask the video to be paused. It was almost like she was talking directly to them via video chat. But he kept his thoughts to himself since no one else, but Yamamoto and Gokudera, seemed to share his thoughts. Plus Reborn might hit him for interrupting.

"You see, I was sent to the future a week before Reborn and everyone else. However, I landed here a little more than a month earlier. At this time, Tsunayoshi is still alive."

This took the past era occupants by surprise. Gokudera even gasped a little. However Reborn frowned slightly. Did the twins know that they were all going to get sent to the future all along? This video was serving as a reminder how much the two were hiding, and it starting to seriously irk him.

"Your charge grew up to be such a handsome and responsible young man!" Jared wiped away a fake tear.

Mark punched him again. "How did you even get _hired_ for this job?" Mark yelled.

'_You know, maybe I can transmit pain to Jared if I hit the screen while his face is plastered on it,_' Alicia thought sardonically, almost wistfully.

"Look, I'm okay with having you around Jared," Hailey said while smiling sweetly. "However, if you don't shut up and allow me to finish this message, then your body might be found in a ditch somewhere in Italy in the next few days."

The younger set occupants in the room shuddered.

But Jared didn't seem to sense the dangerous intent coming from Hailey's words. "Oh Hailey! You're such a silly little girl! I'm so glad I got to be your advisor. You and your sister are so much fun~!"

"Shut up, dammit!" Mark shouted before dragging Jared out of the room.

'_Way to kill the serious mood,_' Alicia thought sarcastically. She was itching to punch the other man, even if it was just a video.

Hailey took a deep breath before continuing. "Even though I know I might be breaking a few of our rules, I'm trying to change the future and prevent him from going to that meeting. Speaking of which, I would like to get something off my chest. I'm talking to you now, Tsuna." Hailey took another deep breath and closed her eyes for a moment, then snapped them open and yelled, "_You idiot_!"

Tsuna jumped a little.

"How ridiculously stubborn can you get! What part of 'if you go to that meeting, Byakuran is going to _kill_ you' do you not understand! I go out of my way to break the rules, and risk imprisonment from the Vindice and you have the gull to do _that_? Was my information not reliable enough for you? There's always another way! I _know_ could have thought of something! I don't give a _damn_ that you have a plan! If you're watching this video then that means that your plan failed, now didn't it? Jeez!"

Hailey took another deep breath and there was a moment of silence. Tsuna was quivering slightly from the sudden outburst.

Alicia, on the other hand, was slightly bemused. But Hailey's words bothered her. There weren't any rules stating that changing the story was wrong. So did that mean Hailey was going to do something else, like try to kill Byakuran with her own hands? But what would lead Hailey into making such a drastic decision?

"Now that I've made my point, I should be able to continue in a calmer fashion. Now let's see…Oh yeah. A few hours ago we got a message from Byakuran. He said that he changed his mind and that he would allow the Star Guardian to stand by the boss while they negotiated. This was very bad, since it was supposed to well known that in this time that I'm dead. I came up with a theory and to test it out I asked if the Moon guardian could come as well, if not, then I would not be attending that meeting. However, Byakuran requested, no demanded, that only I and Tsunayoshi would come along. Even though I know he's after something, I'll still go. I'm going to try and change what fate has already written for Tsuna. But I'm sure you're wondering about why Byakuran has ordered for the Star and Moon guardian to be brought to him alive right?"

Alicia twitched a little as everyone's eyes flickered toward her for a second.

"Well, there's a secret that the Dimenticato has been keeping from us. Actually, they might not have even known. It was recorded in our most protected files left behind by Michael and Sarah. But I have a few more theories to check on so, Alicia, I want you to promise to not use your moon flames until someone tells you otherwise. The night is about to be shattered permanently if this keeps up." Hailey smiled ruefully. "This job has become even more troublesome than I had first anticipated. It makes me wonder if I should have chosen a safer place, even if it was more boring."

She sighed again. "I should also let you know a little more about this time frame. Before the Millefiore initiated their attack on the Vongola and before we died, their first focus was on the Dimenticato Family." Hailey's eyes grew dark. "Byakuran knows our secret. The Dimenticato have been figured out. They attacked our famiglia and used the forced mission shut down. Out of about a hundred members, only 35 were able to make it out."

Alicia blanched. If Byakuran knew then this could get very messy. '_Forced Mission Shut Down, huh? They killed the charges of about 65 members. Since taking down a single member is a tough task on its own, they decided to just attack the charges. The only way a Dimenticato would be able to die in this world is to fail their mission, and have their charge killed. Still, that's a lot of people. Didn't they try going into hiding or something after the first ten were taken out?_' Alicia, for the first time since they started their mission, started to lose confidence that she and Hailey would be able to complete their task.

"Not only that but…" Hailey averted her eyes away from the camera as she hesitated. "David and Zach are gone now too… they're dead…"

"Impossible!" Alicia slammed her hands down on the coffee table. However, this explained why so many members were successfully taken down.

"I thought it was impossible too, at first. But somehow, Byakuran used the forced mission termination on them as well…After that a new boss, that idiot named Charles, was elected. But he was an old fool. He thought that since he was the oldest in physical age that he would be able to take over. But he only made the situation worse. Because of the thirteenth boss, we lost ten more members. The remaining 25 voted and Dimenticato Quattordicesimo was brought forth. But I seriously question the decisions that this person made as well…"

Alicia scowled a little. "Who is it?" She asked quietly, even though she knew she was talking to a pre-recorded video.

"I'll tell you who, in a little bit. I also want to add that those orphans we took in…they're nearly all dead…"

Alicia blanched. Those little kids? They had nothing to do with the mafia!

"Only Alison and Michael…Zach died protecting his little sister. Alex and Angelo got caught during one of the raids, and they risked their lives to make sure the other three made it out. And Luca died three days ago, trying to get to the base so that he could see me again…" Hailey forced a cheerful smile. "I'm sure you've met Alison's and Michael's son, Aiden, by now! He's cute right? Those two told me that they put in little bit from each of our names into his. The 'A-I' part I believe. Simple, but the thought was nice. Made me feel like I aged a hundred years in a second when I found out," she chuckled a little. But her moment of happiness gave way to depression again. "Did you know that all of them are all capable fighters now? They can even use flames…I wanted them to have a peaceful life in Namimori, but their involvement with us only made things worse for them."

"Hailey," Alicia murmured sympathetically. She knew how attached her sister was to those kids.

"Also, we may have to reconsider how we approach the situation around our charges for now on. When the Millefiore went after the Arcobaleno…we snapped…Alicia and I tried to warn all of them and bring them into hiding with us, but…but we…failed…Lal…Reborn…I know you two are there, and I…I need to apologize." Silent tears started to make their way down Hailey's face, and whatever light that remained in her eyes was extinguished. "You see, Alicia and I were there and we were trying to escape with Colonello and Mammon. But during the fight our group got split into two. They put a barrier up and prevented us from reconnecting with the other two. Alicia and I ended up being forced to watch the two of them get killed before we could break the barrier down…I managed to grab Colonello's pacifier, which he had sealed in a box, but I wasn't able to take down their assailant."

Lal clenched her hand into a tight fist. Digging her nails into her palms and turning her knuckles white. She had been wondering who sent Colonello's box to her.

"I was alone when I went to find Reborn, Alicia was going after Fon. We were drawn into a battle as well. However…Reborn ended up taking a shot that was meant for me…Even though I couldn't possibly have died from that, he acted on instinct and made sure I got away safely… Well, he pushed me off the edge of a cliff to be precise," Hailey tried to chuckle a little as she wiped her eyes. "Alicia had to break into the facility where they were holding Reborn's pacifier, sometime after I died."

Reborn frowned.

"And I should mention the reason why the Yamamoto from this time looked like he was hiding something as well as why he was out looking for something and didn't know where the rest of the guardians were. Well he was probably looking for me. Yamamoto, Gokudera, Hibari, and Tsuna from this time frame all know I'm here. There are a few other reasons why I'm not with you at the moment… One reason may be that all my attempts to change the future could have caught up to me and the Vindice are now holding me prisoner; Two, Byakuran could have captured me. And if he did, I don't want you trying to break me out Alicia. You need to focus on our mission; Three, I could also be in hiding, somewhere other than the Vongola base; Four, I could also be trying to locate someone important; And the last reason, well first, Alicia I don't want you to overreact, but there's a good chance that I-"

"Oh, the tragedy!"

Jared had come back.

"That's it!" Alicia snarled and brought forth a club out of no-where, her eyes covered in a dark shadow.

"Ah! Risa-san! No!" Tsuna yelled as he, Yamamoto, and Gokudera struggled to keep the girl from smashing in the screen.

Hailey sighed heavily.

Mark rubbed his temples in frustration. "I want this job. I want this job. _I want this job_," he muttered.

"This time is _so _sad! My poor Hailey and Alicia must be suffering so much!" Jared sobbed.

"I'm sorry," Mark said to Hailey. "I wasn't able to hold him back."

"No, no." Hailey waved the apology away. "It's my fault for not locking the door when I had the chance."

"I'm mortified that all of this is happening to such an innocent bunch of children," Jared continued, waving one hand through the air dramatically while the other arm covered his eyes.

The kill aura from Alicia multiplied drastically.

"Look," Hailey interrupted. "Not that I don't _not_ want you here, but…well what are you doing here?"

"We came to prep you for a forced mission shut down!" Jared replied happily despite the serious nature of his words.

_This_ caught Alicia's attention. She froze with and hissed. "What! Why?"

Hailey sighed again, but continued talking to the recorder rather than the man who had spilled the beans so unapologetically. "You should be able to figure out why they need to do that Alicia. Think about why all of you are there in the first place. There are also other factors playing in this as well, but I'll have to go over them later on. Actually I have a confession to make… I'm-"

The video paused. Suddenly it went out of the video player and the screen showed the file instead.

"Giannini, what's going on?" Alicia demanded. "Keep playing the video!"

"I-I'm trying!" The mechanic said.

But then the file started to delete itself.

"What the heck!" Alicia yelled. "Giannini, hurry up and stop it! The video is going to be deleted!"

"It's not working! The system isn't responding to my instructions!" Giannini shouted back desperately.

The group stared at the now blank screen.

"I apologize. But it was a direct order from Quattordicesimo that, that video be deleted before that piece of information was shared publicly."

The group tensed and everyone looked around to see a new figure standing in the doorway.

"Who are you?" Gokudera shouted.

"Please keep your voice down. I haven't slept in a while so I have a headache. Anyways, I'm here to fulfill a favor for Hailey." The person pulled down the hood of their cloak.

Alicia blinked in surprise. "Danielle?" The girl had grown her hair out, but there was no way it could be anyone else.

Danielle smiled a little. "Hi Alicia. It's good to see you again."

"Ah! You're Xanxus's Moon guardian!" Tsuna exclaimed.

"Correct," Danielle said with a nod.

"What are you doing here?" Reborn inquired.

"I'm here to complete a favor for Hailey, as well as complete the orders of Quattordicesimo," Danielle repeated patiently.

"Do you know where Hailey is? Is she alive?" Alicia asked, almost desperately.

"Yes."

Alicia sighed in relief. "Thank goodness. Please tell me where I can find her."

Danielle shook her head a little. "I'm sorry, but I can't do that."

"Why not?" Alicia demanded.

"It's an order from Quattordicesimo," the older female replied simply.

Alicia bristled a little, but forced herself to calm down. Hailey had asked Danielle to come her as a favor, so the least Alicia could do was hear her out. "What exactly was the favor that Hailey wanted you to complete?"

"She asked me to help train you a little. But first, I believe you found a watch with extra time on it?"

'Extra_ time?_' Tsuna questioned in his mind. He wondered if he would get a solid answer if he asked.

Alicia nodded and held up the chain. "What about it?"

"Have you transferred the amount to your own watch?" Danielle asked. Alicia shook her head as she handed over the small necklace. "Please let me see both of them. I'll make the trade for you."

The group watched as Danielle took the necklace and popped open a small door on the bottom. Alicia did the same with the one that was hanging around her neck before she handed it over. Danielle then connected the two and fiddled with the knobs on the side.

"Honestly," Danielle muttered as she pocketed one watched and returned Alicia's. "You used up an entire year's worth with your reckless fighting style."

Alicia shrugged. "I couldn't help it. I'm not used to defending others all the time."

"Jeez, and you call yourself a guardian?" Danielle reprimanded.

Alicia stuck out her tongue.

"What was all that about?" Tsuna said, finally having enough of being ignored and speaking out.

"Nothing really," Alicia said.

"I think you should tell them," Danielle said softly.

Alicia shook her head. "If I do that, then they'll go and get all depressed."

"But that's better than false hope," Danielle countered. "Besides, with everything that's happened, they'll find out sooner or later. Especially with Byakuran…"

"They're going on the belief that everything can be changed. Besides, I just have to make sure Byakuran never gets the chance to say anything unnecessary," Alicia disputed.

Danielle sighed. "Very well, it's your charge, so we'll go with your decision."

Alicia nodded. "I'm glad that Hailey didn't go through a FMSD. When she mentioned it on her video it almost felt like my heart had burst or something," she said softly.

Danielle grimaced a little. "Actually…Hailey did…"

Alicia's eyes widened. "What! But you said she was alive!"

"She is, but…" Danielle hesitated. She wasn't sure if she should be talking about this in front of everyone else.

"But what?" Alicia demanded anyway.

"Hailey's lucky that your charge didn't come here a day later." Danielle rubbed her temple a little bit from the increasing stress.

"Why's that?" Lal asked.

"If he had come even a day later, Hailey's body wouldn't have been able to take the stress anymore and she would have died. Hailey is the first member of the Dimenticato to have lived through a forced mission shut down. Even so, the strain on her body was immense. She's lucky to have been able to survive that long. It only made things worse when she saw Decimo get shot right in front of her."

"How come she wasn't able to stop that from happening to Juudaime?" Gokudera demanded.

"I'm not at liberty to say. Quattordicesimo has ordered for the remaining members of the Dimenticato to keep a tight lid on these subjects." Danielle couldn't help but sigh again.

"But there should have been something she could have done!" Gokudera insisted. "She's supposed to be the famous White Panther!"

"That just tells you how harsh this time is for even Hailey," Danielle said quietly. "I feel sorry for her. We couldn't have planned for what happened. We didn't know that something like that was possible…"

Reborn figured he wouldn't get anywhere by questioning their conversation, so he tried to gather different information instead. "Who is Dimenticato Quattordicesimo?"

"I am," a new, but familiar, voice said calmly from the doorway.

Everyone looked around to see Hailey.

"Hailey!" Alicia jumped up and started running over to hug her sister. But before she could tackle her twin, she was blocked by Hibari. "Move it tonfa boy!"

Hailey place a hand on the skylark's arm. "It's alright Kyoya. I'm doing much better than yesterday."

Reborn's eyebrow twitch infinitesimally. Since when was Hailey and Hibari on a first name basis?

"Hailey-sama, what are you doing out of bed? You are in no condition to be walking around!" Danielle scolded.

Hailey puffed out her cheeks in a pout and turned her head to the side and stared at the wall.

"Hailey-sama, answer me. Hailey-sama!..." Danielle sighed again. "Please act your age."

"Like, whatever loser," Hailey held her hand, shaped as an L, to her forehead.

"Your proper age!" Danielle snapped.

"You know what to do~!" Hailey sang.

"Hailey-sama," Danielle said exasperatedly. She rolled her eyes. "Oh, alright! Hailey!"

The white haired girl turned back with a smile to face Danielle. "That's better! Now that wasn't so hard, was it? You know you shouldn't make me go through this every time we talk to each other. I'm younger than you, so using an honorific like that is just plain weird."

While Danielle and Hailey argued, Alicia was able to get a good look at her sister. There was a medical eye patch over her right eye and there were bandages covering nearly every inch of her body, excluding her face, upper halves of her fingers, and ankles. Hailey was also wearing rather formal clothes. A dark blue button up shirt, form-fitting suit pants, and short heels. Though, a few buttons on the shirt were undone, and the sleeves were rolled up to her elbows. She had never seen her sister looking so…serious and formal…Like a real boss.

Just what had happened during the time Hailey was here alone?

"_You're_ Dimenticato Quattordicesimo?" Lal asked.

Hailey nodded slowly. "Due to some…unexpected events, I was required to take up the position."

Alicia smiled. "In any case, I'm glad we're together again. We really need to catch up! Did you get to see the video's I took? What happened when you got here? How did the older Tsuna react to you showing up?"

Hailey held up a hand to stem her sister's flow of questions. "I did get to see the video, thanks for that by the way. But I'm sorry, Alicia. Can we talk later?"

Alicia's smile faltered a little. "Wha-…What do you mean?"

Hailey smiled apologetically. "I'll try to catch up with you as soon as I can. But right now I have the responsibilities of being Quattordicesimo to take care of."

Alicia wasn't smiling anymore. "But Hailey…we haven't seen each other in nearly half a month. Can't you do that stuff later?"

Hailey shook her head. "I'm sorry, but this is really important. I'll try to catch up with all of you later."

"You could at least have some tea with us," Tsuna offered. He could tell that Alicia was nearly desperate to get some time with her sister. But he couldn't understand why Hailey, of all people, couldn't sense that. Was she deliberately ignoring it?

The white haired girl shook her head again. "I'm sorry everyone, but I have something else I need to take care of first. Maybe in a little bit, okay?"

"Then, at least tell us what you were about to confess on the video?" Alicia pressed.

"And explain why you couldn't save Juudaime!" Gokudera growled.

Hailey sighed. "I'll tell you later. But Alicia, I need a favor. While I'm taking care of the duties of being the boss of the Dimenticato, could you take care of our guardianship duties on your own?"

Alicia nodded numbly. She didn't completely understand what was going on, but she was too occupied with her hurt feelings to bother.

"Sorry, but thanks." Hailey turned to look at the others. "Reborn, Lal? Could I speak with you two in a little bit? There's something that I think we should discuss. I'll have someone lead you over to my office when you're ready."

Hailey was about to leave, but paused and turned back to her sister, her expression a little dark. "Alicia, there's a new file you should read. Mark and Jared dropped it off." Her gaze hazed over a bit and her expression became even darker. "Perhaps it's a good thing we ended up in the future. Otherwise I might have rushed over to kill that man myself to prevent that next event from happening.

The white haired girl snapped out of her thoughts and looked directly at her sister. "Make sure you read up. It'll be important for later on."

With that, Hailey turned and left.

* * *

><p>"Was it really alright to treat them so coldly?" Danielle asked softly as the duo walked down the hall, Hibari had already disappeared elsewhere.<p>

"It's for the best," Hailey said with a small smile. "My time has become extremely limited. It'll be better if our relationship starts growing farther apart sooner than later."

Danielle stared at her younger boss. "I doubt you'll be able to slowly distance yourself. Knowing you, you'll put them through a bunch of hot and cold fazes. And that is definitely worse than just being nice to them till the end."

"Perhaps, but I'll just have to do my best to not act so bipolar," Hailey said softly. "I need to disappear as gently as I can so that I don't hurt anyone too badly."

But to Danielle it sounded more like Hailey was trying to convince herself more than anyone else.

* * *

><p>Alicia returned to her room after the meeting ended and lay down on her bed as she contemplated her reunion with Hailey.<p>

'_What the hell was all that?_' Alicia asked herself. She rolled over onto her side. '_Since when was Hailey giving me the cold shoulder? Did I do something?...But I can't think of anything!_'

Alicia huffed a little then sat up. Perhaps Hailey was talking to the others in the kitchen or something. She was about to exit her room when she heard a few of hushed voices.

"But I really have to feel sorry for her," a voice Alicia recognized as Danielle said. "It's like she's carrying the weight of the entire world on her shoulders. First it was the weight of the earth and now its people as well."

"A lot of work for those scrawny shoulders," a squeaky voice muttered. It sounded a lot like Reborn.

"That wasn't something I expected to hear though," the last voice said. Alicia figured it must be Lal. "Who knew that, that girl ever carried such a burden?"

"The Dimenticato are definitely harsher than I had anticipated," Reborn agreed.

'_And that was sayin' something,_' Alicia agreed sarcastically.

"I'm going to try my best to keep her work load to a minimum," Danielle continued. "Her job as a guardian in this time is tough, but now as the boss her responsibility has multiplied a hundred fold. I could tell that she felt really guilty for asking Alicia to carry her weight of their guardianship, but she needed to do it or she would collapse from the extra work."

"Let's just hope that Alicia isn't dense enough to force it back on her," Reborn quipped.

Alicia felt a vein pop. She was _not_ dense! She could handle all of this all on her own! She would show them! She would definitely not be a burden to Hailey!

She waited for the voices to fade before stepping out of her room and continuing to the kitchen. And like she had hoped, Hailey and the rest were talking while having tea.

"Risa-chan!" Kyoko and Haru called out together.

"Would you like something to eat?" Kyoko asked.

Haru nodded. "We saved you some dinner!"

Alicia shook her head. "I'm fine. I just came here to talk with Hailey and everyone else for a bit."

"Risa-chan, you haven't eaten a single bite since we've been here!" Kyoko scolded. "That's really unhealthy!"

"Ara?" Hailey looked up. "Alicia, didn't you tell them that we have our own kitchen in our wing?"

The others glanced between the two girls.

Alicia shrugged. "Must have slipped my mind."

Tsuna deadpanned a little, but Kyoko and Haru looked a little relived.

Hailey nodded and took another sip of her tea. She watched as the two girls left the room, saying that they had to do some laundry or some other chore.

Alicia raised an eyebrow at her sister.

Hailey mimicked her twin. "What?"

"You've had your hair down since we first met up again," Alicia replied slowly.

"Aah," Hailey sighed in acknowledgment. She tugged on a few strands. "It's a habit I picked up from this time."

"Usually you get really tense and you can't think straight unless your hair is out of your way," Alicia commented off-handedly, remembering a few circumstances that Hailey freaked out while planning for a mission since she couldn't find a hairband.

Hailey just shrugged. "Now it relaxes me."

Alicia smirked a little, but Hailey's words bothered her a little. Her excuse was legitimate enough, but then why did she have a nagging suspicion that there was something else behind those words?

"So what are you doing out here?" Reborn asked the white haired female. "I thought you had work to do."

"I do, but Danielle kicked me out of my office and said I wasn't allowed back in until I socialized for a little bit," Hailey sniffed indignantly, though ruined her appearance with a childish pout afterwards.

Alicia thought that she knew Hailey like the back of her hand. But, since when was she unable to tell if her own sister was lying anymore? Alicia studied her sister a bit before sitting down next to her. "So what were you going to confess on the video?"

"That I became Dimenticato the Fourteenth," Hailey answered. There was no way that she was going to tell them her other secret just yet.

"So why weren't you able to save the tenth?" Gokudera demanded.

"Because I was…occupied," Hailey said indifferently, unconsciously raising a hand to her chest.

"What do you mean?" Gokudera pressed.

Hailey's gaze became unfocused for the second time that day. "A lot of things happened in this time…A good portion of it wasn't in my favor. I ended up fighting in a bad condition and with a lot more disadvantages than I was able to handle." She rubbed a wound that was still healing because of the commotion that happened not too long ago.

Alicia frowned. "Since when did 'little miss perfect hitman' become unable to make a fight work to her advantage?"

Hailey rubbed her temples wearily. "Since my intellect was challenged by anomalies that weren't supposed to exist in the first place."

Alicia's frown deepened. Why couldn't she read her sister's words like she used to?

Hailey took another sip of her tea. "In any case, why don't I take care of training Yamamoto and Gokudera for a while till Reborn thinks up a better tutor for them?"

The hitman nodded. "That sounds good. At least you're not as useless as your sister."

Several veins popped on Alicia's temple, but Hailey only giggled a bit.

A small buzzing sound emitted from Hailey's coat pocket. "Ara?" She took out a phone and looked at the screen. Whoever it was caused her to frown a bit before she answered. "Bonjour Monsieur Bernoulli, to what do I owe the pleasure of your call?… That is correct. Was everything not at your expectations?... Monsieur, I apologize, but that was not a part of your request…Would you like to listen to our deal again? I recorded everything… Bernoulli, I wouldn't criticize my famiglia if I were you. Even with our few members, the Dimenticato are still a hundred times stranger than _your_ family…Try me…Good day to you Monsieur Bernoulli. And I would watch my back for now on if I were you, Monsieur. After all, I don't take death threats very kindly." Hailey's eyes narrowed dangerously, her voice cold and hard. "Good-bye."

"What was that about?" Reborn asked as he watched the less temperamental sister stuff her phone back into her pocket.

Hailey let out a frustrated puff of air. "Smaller families have been causing us a lot of trouble since we lost so many members. And in order for the rest of our members to finish their trials successfully, we need to maintain a strong hold in this world." Hailey ran a hand over her face wearily. "It's been a lot of work to keep up our alliances and maintain a continuous and reliable information network. Not to mention the hounding I've been getting from the Vongola and Millefiore."

"So you were forced to become the boss of the Dimenticato?" Tsuna asked. He was looking for someone to commiserate with. Maybe Reborn would be able to understand his pain and unwillingness to become boss if he saw Hailey's condition first.

"Not completely. Originally, I was never in the line to become the boss," Hailey replied. "After David, was supposed to be Zach. But for some reason, Byakuran was able to figure out how to get rid of our members. We were supposed to upset his equations, however it backfired and we were turned over instead."

"Things that we hadn't predicted _have_ been happening a lot more than usual," Alicia agreed.

"And I don't like the unexpected," Hailey growled. She switched into English as she continued. "I have predicted nearly everything, _and yet_ someone is changing it. I get the feeling that we have a traitor in our midst."

Alicia frowned and switched to speaking English as well. "From us? Could our missions be clashing with someone else's?"

Hailey's frustrated frown deepened. "It shouldn't be possible. The only one I can think of, who would, is from sector M-1."

Tsuna glanced between the two, completely lost. Yamamoto and Gokudera were no better.

However, Reborn frowned a bit. He had an inkling of what the two may have been discussing.

"You don't think…?" Alicia trailed off.

Hailey shook her head. "That shouldn't be possible. And in any case, he would be in violation of _those_ rules. He has not notified me, nor has he been granted permission to cross."

Alicia stroked her chin a little, like she had an invisible beard. "But if he has? He could have tried taking his mission one step further, in which case he'd be with that man right now."

Hailey sighed and stared at a dot on the table, contemplating what she should do to handle the situation. "Then you'll have to face him, Alicia."

"Me?" Alicia said, taken aback a little. "What about you?"

Hailey shook her head. "I'm not allowed to fight in these cases. But if he shows up and doesn't back down…" Hailey sighed remorsefully. "Then I'll have to proclaim a mission failure. And I'm definitely not looking forward to that."

Alicia sighed as well and went back to Japapnese. "That's gonna suck- OW!"

Leon changed back into a chameleon from a hammer.

"What the hell was that for, Reborn?" Alicia demanded as she nursed the small bump on the back of her head.

"If you two are going to speak so cryptically and leave the rest out, then go talk to each other in private," Reborn responded with a smirk.

"But why hit _me_?" Alicia snipped.

"Because Hailey is the boss of an allied family and you are her lackey," Reborn answered evilly.

Only Tsuna and Reborn were able to catch the slight tensing and the small twitch as the first half of Reborn's words reached Hailey's ears.

Still, Tsuna couldn't help but sweat drop a little from Reborn's harsh remark. He sympathized with Alicia's pain and unfair treatment.

Alicia felt her patience snap. "WHAT!"

"Sorry, sorry," Hailey waved a hand to try and cool down her sister. "It was my fault for bringing up the topic. So is there anything else you want to know? Though I must warn you, I can't divulge everything."

"Well, how did you get sent to the future?" Tsuna asked.

Hailey tilted her head to the side to show that she was confused.

"Well, Alicia was kind of…blasted out of a pile of junk, but the rest of us just switched places with our older selves," Tsuna explained. "At first I thought it was because you two were dead, but then I realized that my older self was dead as well."

"Hmmm. Well I also appeared with a… bang. I got sent flying out of some bushes and down a steep hill. Into a stump, actually." Hailey chuckled a little. "From the reports I retrieved, it seems that Alicia's and my older selves thought it would be funny to play a trick on our younger, well I guess current, selves."

The teenage boys sweat dropped a little. Who on earth played a prank on themselves, even if it was a younger version?

"Actually," Alicia said suddenly as their earlier conversation came back to her. "Why was Danielle referring you and your title as separate entities?"

Hailey grimaced. "I asked Danielle not to say anything. I felt like I should be the one to tell you."

"Then why did you tell Danielle to delete the video before you said it?" Reborn asked. He had a suspicion that Hailey was going to tell the secret she had told him and Lal a little while ago.

Hailey flashed the hitman a quick look, confirming his suspicion before replying. "I wanted to tell you guys in person. That video was in case I wasn't able to make it back."

"Well, I'm glad you're here safe," Tsuna said with a smile.

Hailey flashed a smile before she stood up slowly. "Well, Tsunayoshi has to get to his training now. After all, you need to get stronger as quickly as possible. And as for Yamamoto and Gokudera, well, I want you two to stay on standby for now."

"What!" Gokudera yelled, outraged.

"I want you two to think carefully about your fight with Gamma, and everything that happened as a result," Hailey replied smoothly, unfazed by the boy's reaction. "This will be an exercise for your mind while you let your body relax and heal a little. I want you two to be in better shape when you start your training, and you're still dealing with the after effects of Gamma's attacks. I'll be back in a few hours to check on how you're doing. You should also get going Alicia. Danielle is waiting for you in training room three of our wing."

Alicia nodded and left.

"Tell Lal to make sure she doesn't train Tsunayoshi _too_ hard," Hailey said with a smile and wave.

Reborn's only reply was a mischievous smirk.

* * *

><p>"<em>Thank you very much," Kyoko said to Giannini as the man left. She and Haru turned toward all the medicines that Giannini had brought in to determine which would be vest for I-Pin to take. "What would be best?"<em>

"_Maybe we should take her to a real doctor," Haru said worriedly. "We can't really tell what her symptoms are." The two girls glanced at I-Pin who was shaking her head uncomfortably._

"_But…" Kyoko trailed off, unsure of what to do._

"_There's a doctor who has taken care of me for a long time. If we go there…" Haru offered._

"_We can't!" Kyoko said immediately. "If what happened to me happens again…"_

"_But there's no other way!" Haru countered. "If she gets any worse…" She turned back to the young Chinese girl, watching her whimper. Haru turned back to Kyoko determinedly. "We can't just leave her alone."_

_After watching I-Pin whimper and struggle a little more, Kyoko gave in. The two girls devised a plan to allow Haru and I-Pin to escape unnoticed._

"_Shouldn't we ask Risa-chan to go along at least?" Kyoko asked as she strapped I-Pin into the child carrier._

_Haru shook her head. "Haru can take care of this. My disguise will hide us! Then Tsuna-san won't have to worry." There was no way she was going to allow Alicia to take the glory for saving one of them again. Haru was determined to show Tsuna that she was just as brave and useful!_

_Haru waited till Kyoko had drawn Giannini away with her 'not enough bath water' excuse, then ran out the entrance as fast as she could. She would definitely succeed! And even if she didn't, Haru was sure that Tsuna would save her._

* * *

><p>Hailey sighed and pushed herself out of her seat.<p>

Danielle looked up from her pile of paperwork. "Is there something wrong?"

Hailey rubbed the back of her head and sighed again. "It looks like a little mouse has squeezed out a crack."

Danielle frowned a little. "Should I go take care of it?"

The young boss shook her head. "I'll do it. I need to check something anyways."

Danielle narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "You're not going outside, are you?"

"What? No," Hailey denied shiftily. "I'm just going for a short walk."

Danielle rolled her eyes, but waved the girl away.

Hailey chuckled a little before becoming serious. She had better hurry. She needed to make sure Bianchi didn't go out as well. After all, Hailey's strength would barely be able to hold up three people.

And there was something else she needed to confirm as well.

However, Reborn and Tsuna won't be very happy if they find out.

* * *

><p><strong>Oooooh~, what will Reborn and Tsuna be unhappy about? Does Alicia know about this or not?<strong>

**Well, you'll just have to wonder for now.**

**I hope you guys liked this! Hopefully you don't dislike Hailey's return _too_ much. **

**I should add that I was going to put in a nice long extra to apologize for the lengthy wait, however the extra kept getting longer, and longer, and longer till I decided that I'll just make it a one shot. I'll post it by this weekend, I hope. Check it out, I think it should be humorous enough.**

**Please REVIEW and tell me what you thought about this chapter! See ya!**


	23. Chapter XXIII

**Hey there! I'm actually able to update as scheduled! Yay!**

**I don't have much to say this time, except PLEASE REVIEW! ****To those who did review thank you so so so so so so _so SO_ much! It's the reason I keep writing!**

**Enjoy!**

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><p>Chapter XXIII<p>

Hailey walked calmly down the empty street, like she wasn't afraid that someone was going to attack her. To anyone else it might of appeared like she was just any other working civilian coming home or on break for lunch.

She huffed a little as she thought about the fuss Kyoko and Bianchi kicked up before she left.

* * *

><p><em>Flashback<em>

"_I'll get them back, so take care of the rest," Bianchi told a downcast Kyoko as she started to walk out the door._

"_Hold on a second, Bianchi." Hailey jogged up to the group. She smiled a little. "I'm glad I caught you before you left."_

"_What is it Hailey? I need to leave quickly or Haru will be in even greater danger," Bianchi said hurriedly._

"_Actually, Bianchi, I came to tell you that I would take care of Haru and I-Pin," Hailey replied calmly._

_Bianchi shook her head. "You're the boss of a family now. You need to stay behind and take care of those duties first. I'll take care of those two girls."_

"_I am Tsuna's guardian above everything else. And Haru's predicament will pull in Tsuna if it isn't taken care of properly," Hailey said in the same clam manner._

"_Do you doubt my ability?" Bianchi challenged._

_Hailey shook her head. "I am fully aware of your abilities storm attribute poison scorpion. But for this task it would be better for someone like me to go out. I already know who the enemies Haru will encounter are and what their tricks and abilities are."_

"_Then we'll go together to bring those two back," Bianchi said._

_Hailey shook her head again. "I only have enough energy to take care of three people total, including myself."_

_Bianchi raised an eyebrow in interest. "You're going to use your ability for this?"_

"_I'll be using a few, actually," Hailey said with a wry smile._

"_You should take Bianchi-san with you Hailey-chan!" Kyoko said worriedly._

_Hailey raised an eyebrow at Kyoko. "I believe I already said I couldn't."_

"_But you could get hurt too!" Kyoko countered._

"_And yet you're willing to let Bianchi go out there," Hailey pointed out._

_But Kyoko shook her head. "Bianchi-san is older and stronger."_

_Hailey smirked at this remark. _

"_You don't have to worry, Kyoko," Bianchi said coolly. "Hailey will be able to handle this. Trust her."_

_Kyoko looked down at her feet again. "Please don't tell Tsuna-kun and the others about this." Kyoko glanced back up at the two girls._

"_I can keep it a secret," Bianchi said confidently with a smile. "It would interfere with their training, so we'll handle it."_

"_All Dimenticato are keepers of secrets. One more won't make that much difference," Hailey said with a smirk._

"_But…" Even though Kyoko wanted to keep it a secret and was glad the other two were willing to comply, a part of her wanted them to tell the others anyway. She felt like it would be extra insurance to keep the other two girls safe._

"_Don't worry. I'll bring them back," Hailey said with a warmer smile, then ran out of the base._

_End Flashback._

* * *

><p>'<em>Funny. I stole a line from Bianchi,<em>' Hailey thought sarcastically. '_Not that it really matters._'

"-anted to catch the one who beat Captain Gamma, but you'll do."

Hailey sighed a little. '_This guy is such a creeper, even if he only rubbed her shoulder to put honey on her, it's still weird._' Hailey rounded the corner and saw Haru surrounded by four men in suits and a fifth wearing the black spell uniform, who was obviously the leader of the group.

"Where are your friends?" The leader said.

There was a flash and lighting stuck the ground between Haru and the Millefiore leader before he could touch her.

* * *

><p>"Giannini I need to use your surveillance system!" Alicia shouted as she barged into the computermeeting room.

"I'm sorry Alicia-san, but we're looking for Haru-san right now," Giannini replied.

Alicia waved her hand back and forth. "Forget about that, the Haru problem is being taken care of."

Tsuna and Kyoko looked up excitedly.

"You mean they're back!" Kyoko said happily.

"No, I mean Hailey went out to get her," Alicia corrected. "But that's why I need to use your surveillance system!"

"Do you think Hailey is in trouble?" Lal asked seriously.

"No way! But I want to watch her fight!" Alicia smiled viciously. "Even _I_ haven't seen Hailey's ability yet. I can't wait to see what she can do! Anyway move it!" Alicia pushed the mechanic aside and started typing different codes into the computer.

"You should go watch over Lambo in the kitchen," Bianchi said softly to Kyoko. The orange haired girl nodded and walked out of the room.

"Got it!" Alicia said excitedly and zoomed in on her sister.

They all watched as lighting flames gathered in her hands and were thrown between Haru and the Millefiore member.

* * *

><p>"Who-" The man jumped in surprise from who was approaching him and took a few more steps back before regaining his courage and smirking. "Well, well, well. Look who we have here. The White Panther, Don of the Dimenticato. This is quite a big catch."<p>

"I don't have the time, nor the patience, to deal with grunts like you," Hailey said coldly. Her face masked all emotions. She walked over to Haru and whispered something into the girl's ear. Haru nodded and a second later, she disappeared.

"What the-!" The Millefiore members all scrambled and looked around for the missing girl. "Where did she go? Find her!"

"There's no need," Hailey said calmly. "They're long gone now. They should arrive back at their base any minute now."

The leader rounded back on Hailey. "That's alright. We have you and that's more than enough."

"Oh?" Hailey cocked an eyebrow. "Is that so? Last time I checked, the Dimenticato were supposed to be safe from the Millefiore."

* * *

><p>The group watching in the Vongola base frowned.<p>

"What does she mean, Risa-san?" Tsuna asked Alicia.

But Alicia was frowning as well. "I don't know either. Why don't I?"

* * *

><p>"You violated the contract, so we are free to attack you as we see fit and take you back to Byakuran-sama!" The leader replied triumphantly.<p>

Hailey just stared at the group. "What in the contract did I break exactly? As far as I know, I am perfectly within the lines of the terms that were drawn out between myself and Byakuran."

"You know the contract better than anyone, Dimenticato Quattordicesimo!" The leader of the group said snidely.

"I know very well. And I have upheld my end of the deal." Hailey crossed her arms. "The Dimenticato and the Vongola are no longer allies. My famiglia and I will no longer lend our information to any member of the Vongola family, nor will aid them in battle. In return, the Millefiore will not attack any more of my members."

* * *

><p>It was like the temperature in the room had dropped below zero.<p>

Alicia paled as she took in the news.

"What?" Tsuna whispered. He turned toward Alicia accusingly, but froze before he could say anything. He had never seen Alicia look so shocked.

"Wh-When did this happen?" Alicia asked softly, not looking at anything else besides her sister's face on the screen.

"It was made a couple months before the Hailey from this time died." The group turned to see Danielle leaning against the wall next to the door.

"But why?" Alicia asked incredulously. "Hailey, you, and I are guardians of Tsuna and Xanxus! How can we _not_ be allied with them?"

"The you from this time and I agreed that none of our actions would be under the Dimenticato name anymore," Danielle said softly. "That way Hailey could make the deal and prevent Byakuran from not only spilling out secret, but also to keep him from killing anymore of our members."

"But didn't previous soldiers say that they were ordered to bring in the Star and Moon Guardian to Byakuran alive?" Reborn refuted.

Danielle nodded slowly. "About a few weeks, when this Hailey and the Tsuna from this time went to the meeting, Byakuran changed his orders. He felt like, that since The Vongola Don was out of the way, then he was free to take the item Hailey has in her possession as well. Then, a few days ago, Hailey had a video conference with Byakuran and reestablished the contract."

"But there's no point now!" Alicia argued.

But Danielle shook her head. "Currently, 15 of our members have their charges being held captive by the Millefiore. Not only that but…"

"But what?" Alicia demanded.

"Someone else, of great importance has their life being threatened as well," Danielle replied softly.

"Who?" Reborn asked. But there was a tint of anger and frustration in his voice.

Danielle shook her head vigorously. "I cannot say!"

Tsuna ground his teeth and clenched his fists angrily. How could Hailey go behind their backs and make a deal with Byakuran!

But Lal was oddly calm.

"Please try to understand," Danielle said desperately. "Hailey made all of these choices with both the Dimenticato _and_ Vongola in mind!"

"What good would come out of making a deal with the Millefiore?" Tsuna bit back.

"By forming a contract with Byakuran, not only did Hailey ensure the safety of the rest of our members, but she directed a great deal of the Millefiore's attention on herself instead. Instead of sending a massive army to try and find the Vongola hideout and annihilate you guys, they have to be careful that they don't intrude on the Dimenticato's territory!"

"And if you think about, Sawada," Lal added. "Hailey lied to that guy just now."

Everyone turned toward the bluenette in confusion.

"Hailey said that she wasn't giving any help to the Vongola. But ever since she arrived here, Hailey has been providing us with information and checking on your friends and your well-being," Lal explained.

"…That's true…" Tsuna looked down in shame. How could he doubt a friend so easily.

Alicia breathed a little easier, but she was still immensely hurt. Why hadn't Hailey told her any of this yet?

They all turned back to the screen to see what Hailey did next.

* * *

><p>"So pray tell," Hailey continued. "What did I do wrong?"<p>

"You aided a member of Vongola," the man said with a smirk.

"Pardon," Hailey said with the same cold face. She held up a finger and lit a tiny storm flame just above it to threaten the enemy. "But that girl and has absolutely nothing to do with the Vongola. All she ever did was talk to Decimo while they were in middle school, and that's not enough to say she was involved with them."

"Well that isn't our problem!" The leader snarled, though he was sweating a little from the killing intent coming off the girl. "She's on our hit list, and your interference was a break in the contract"

Hailey sighed and defused her flame. "Correction. You fools are breaking your boss' deal in this contract."

"What?" One of the lower grunts said stupidly.

"You're violating your half of the contract," Hailey reiterated.

"What do you mean?" The leader demanded.

Hailey sighed again, this time more exasperated. "It means, you clowns are on Dimenticato turf. And what I want," Hailey held up her hand with her palm up and closed her eyes. A little white flame burst into life, "Is for all of you to disappear."

A small white flame burst to life next to all five of the Millefiore goons. Hailey opened her eyes slowly and revealed crimson irises.

"Ha! That's not enough to stop me!" The leader shouted confidently. He pulled out his box weapon. "Elettrico Hornet!" A wasps' nest appeared above him and an army of hornets came flying out.

"I don't have time to play with such weak fools." And in a blink of the eye, all traces of the Millefiore soldiers and their box weapons were gone. "You didn't provide much of a fight," Hailey muttered. "Though, I guess I shouldn't have expected any better from such a low rank officer."

Hailey turned to walk away, but suddenly slumped against the nearby wall and clutched her chest, her other hand covering her mouth as she coughed.

* * *

><p>The camera zoomed in a little more so that the group got an up close of Hailey's face. They could see that her eyes had already returned to their normal blue, but she was breathing rather hard and sweating a little. Hailey appeared a little more pale than normal.<p>

Danielle hissed softly. "She used way too much of her energy and flames."

Reborn's attention spiked. Perhaps this would be a good time to gather more info on the twins. "What do you mean?"

"Hailey's star flame has a unique ability. But in order to use it she has to have a great amount of energy, stamina, and tolerance," Danielle explained hesitantly. "But you'll have to find out more from Hailey."

"Not to mention what that air is doing to her," Lal muttered.

Alicia's ears perked a little. What did Lal mean? Was Hailey allergic to something? But Alicia couldn't think of anything! Then again, Hailey could have developed it recently…But why did it feel like Lal's words held something more serious, and possibly fatal?

Movement on the screen drew their attention once again.

* * *

><p>Hailey looked up as Haru reappeared. Hailey took a deep breath to prevent herself from snapping at the brunette. "Come on, we should get back to the base now. I'm sure the others are worried, despite watching everything on the surveillance camera."<p>

* * *

><p>Tsuna, Giannini, and Alicia laughed nervously.<p>

But Reborn smirked. "This should be good enough. Let's go wait for them by the entrance."

Tsuna and Alicia nodded and walked out of the room so that they could find Gokudera and Yamamoto and inform the two about the day's events with Lal and Reborn while Giannini shut down the screen.

* * *

><p>"So what would you have done, if I had not arrived when I did?" Hailey asked after a bit of walking.<p>

"Hahi!" Haru turned to look at the back of Hailey's head. "Haru's sure that Tsuna-san would have saved her!" She proclaimed proudly.

"If Bianchi had gone after you, she would have gotten severely injured," Hailey told the girl.

"Bianchi is strong! And even if she did get hurt, Haru knows that Tsuna-san would have been able to protect all of us!" Haru continued to say. '_It would have been better if Tsuna-san came instead,_' Haru thought to herself dejectedly. '_Then Tsuna-san would have seen how brave and useful Haru was! But at least Risa-san didn't save me. Then Tsuna-san would have praised her instead. Maybe Tsuna-san will still praise Haru! Haru did go out on my own and cure I-Pin!_'

Haru was so deep in her thoughts and fantasies, that she didn't notice Hailey's pained expression or Hailey clutching her chest. The white haired girl was panting heavily again as she forced herself to press on so that she could lead Haru back to the Vongola's hideout entrance.

'_These attacks are growing more frequent,_' Hailey thought with a grimace. To her relief the pain started to fade away a moment later. '_I won't be able to hold it off much longer with the way things are going._'

* * *

><p>Soon enough the two were walking through the entrance. Though after walking through the anti tri-ni-sette radiation filter rays Hailey had to lean against the wall, but she crossed her arms to make it look like it was because she was allowing the others to run up to the three of them.<p>

"Haru-chan!" Kyoko called out in happiness and relief.

SLAP!

Everyone stared in shock.

Alicia had slapped Haru across the face, hard.

Haru just stood there with her head to the side and her eyes widened in shock.

And before anyone could react or say anything, Alicia walked over to her sister and hugged her.

Finally the gears started grinding in Haru's head again. "What did you slap Haru for?" She demanded, turning toward the black haired girl. Tears started to spill over as the pain caught up to her.

Haru's words broke everyone else out of their shock and they closed the gap between their two groups.

"Now, now. Let's try to calm down-" Yamamoto tried, but he honestly didn't know how to react to this type of situation.

"'Cause you endangered not only I-Pin, but Hailey and everyone else in this hideout!" Alicia replied grumpily, completely ignoring Yamamoto. "And because your older self freaking punched me in the jaw," she muttered, though only Tsuna, Reborn, Lal, and Hailey were able to hear her.

Tsuna could help but deadpan from Alicia's last remark. Meanwhile Lal and Reborn smirked a little.

Alicia pulled away from her sister and turned back to the rest of the group.

"You shouldn't have done that Risa-chan!" Kyoko reprimanded.

Alicia raised an eyebrow skeptically. "Even though you _two_ knew perfectly well that it was dangerous for you to go out there _alone_? Not only that, but you two endangered everyone needlessly!"

"I-Pin was sick, so Haru took her to a doctor!" Haru exclaimed. Honestly, Haru believed that they should all be thanking her instead!

"Hailey, Danielle, Bianchi, and I are more than capable enough to take care of that!" Alicia snapped. "You should have come to us first. But you were too stubborn, thick-headed, and plain stupid to realize that!"

Kyoko bent her head down in shame as she realized that even if she didn't know the twins were able to take care of the young Chinese girl, she knew Bianchi was perfectly capable of taking care of I-Pin.

Gokudera, while slightly bemused from watching the stupid woman get slapped by gun freak, couldn't help but shudder a little. And he though his sister was bad. It was a scary thought that more than one woman in this world could act so frightening. He would definitely have to be more weary of Alicia for now on.

Fuuta and Giannini weren't any better off. More than anything, they had definitely gained newfound respect for their female counterparts. Who knew they could act so vicious?

"But we didn't know that!" Haru, ignorantly, continued to argue.

"You could have asked!" Alicia countered. "Don't you ever think ahead? Your foolish actions affect everyone around you! What if Hailey hadn't arrived in time to save you?"

"Haru knows that Tsuna-san would have saved us!" Haru bellowed confidently. She didn't realize that she was just adding oil to the fire.

Alicia glared at the idiotic girl. "And what if that opponent had injured Tsuna? Maybe the enemy could have held you hostage and forced Tsuna to stand still while they killed him!"

Haru blanched. She hadn't thought of that.

While this teenage drama was amusing, Reborn turned his attention to the more grim member of the returning group. Hailey was obviously feeling unwell, and if Danielle's explanation was anything to go by, then that meant that it had taken a great deal out of the teenage girl to avoid an all-out battle. Not to mention the damage she took on by just stepping out of the base. A quick glance at Lal, told Reborn that she had also noticed and was just as concerned.

Tsuna decided he should step in before this conversation started to get _really_ out of hand. "Alicia, it's alright now. Everyone is back, safe and sound. There's nothing else we can do."

"_No_! It is _not_ alright!" Alicia snapped. "Do you know why Hailey went out? Because she didn't want this to distract you from your training, not that it worked! If you want to get everyone home, then you don't need petty little distractions like this every other day! Every time you go out of this base and use your god forsaken ring, you risk getting caught or revealing the location of this hideout! I'm sick and tired of these two causing constant problems that shouldn't be there in the first place!"

"But that's not the case," Hailey interjected calmly. "Tsuna is right. This is the time to let it go."

"But what if they do it again?" Alicia argued. "I doubt they'll learn their lesson if everyone keeps forgiving their actions like this!"

"I'm sure it'll be fine," Hailey replied smoothly. She pushed herself away from the wall and started walking away from the rest. "I want to get some rest now, so if you'll ex..cuse…me…" Hailey collapsed.

"Hailey/-chan!"

An arm wove around her waist and prevented Hailey from colliding with the ground. "Sorry, Kyoya," she mumbled without looking up. "Guess I used up too much energy this time around."

Hibari didn't reply, but lifted the girl into his arms.

"I should have taken care of them before he called out those irritating bugs," Hailey murmured. She passed out a second later.

"We need to get her treated right away," Danielle said hurriedly. She hissed a little. "I told her not to go outside. Is she _trying_ to kill herself! Hopefully it's not too bad." She and Hibari walked away from the rest, who were too stunned to move.

Reborn tugged his fedora down to hide his concerned frown. That girl really did carry come of the same qualities of the sky he knew.

"Damn it!" Alicia punched the wall hard enough to create a large dent.

Haru flinched a little. "Was this Haru's doing?" She asked softly.

"Hailey falls ill just by going outside of this base. If she didn't need to save you, then she wouldn't have had to use an excessive amount of energy," Lal said sternly.

Alicia stalked off angrily before she could lose her temper and pulverize the female brunette. Tsuna glanced between the two groups before determining that Haru had enough support and ran after Alicia.

Reborn and Lal took their leave as well.

Haru broke out into a sob and was left to be comforted by Kyoko and Bianchi. Fuuta and Giannini stayed behind as well for a while before, they too, left the girls alone.

* * *

><p>"Risa-san! Wait up!" Tsuna called as he ran after the enraged girl, who was rounding another corner.<p>

"Stupid gun freak! Listen to Juudaime!" Gokudera yelled as he and Yamamoto trailed behind Tsuna.

Alicia stopped walking suddenly. "Please explain to me _why_ you three are persistently following me?" She asked exasperatedly.

"We wanted to make sure you were okay," Tsuna replied a little hesitantly. He paused before continuing. "Why were you so upset back there, Risa-san?"

Alicia raised and hand and covered her eyes, folding her other arm across her stomach. "You guys don't have the slightest inkling how much were are trying to put this whole thing in your favor. And then those two girls have to go and mess it up. All those assassins we took out, will end up useless with those two and their reckless behavior. I am tired of covering for someone who can't even defend themselves. If, at the very least, they tried to aid you in some other way than emotional support, then perhaps I could put up a front like Hailey and make it through the day. But it pisses me off when they blatantly put everyone in trouble because they can't take this situation seriously enough and think things through. None of you understand, and what's worse is that no matter how Hailey and I try to put this in your favor, despite what it might do to us, you guys seem unable to take advantage of it!" Alicia sighed. "Only a quarter of a century and I already feel so much older," she muttered this part quietly though.

"I'm glad you're trying so hard to help us," Tsuna replied kindly. "But please don't push yourselves too much. And please try to understand that Kyoko and Haru don't know everything, so they can't do very much to help it. Sometimes I think we should tell them, but that would bring them even further into our world and it'll make them even more scared."

"I'm just _so tired_ of all our working going to waste," Alicia sighed. "You guys don't know anything, but at least you can fend for yourselves and contribute something."

Tsuna opened his mouth to try and comfort the girl, and maybe try to get a few answers, when Alicia suddenly raised a hand in the air and swiftly slapped herself. "…Uh…"

"I've got to get ahold of myself before I get all mushy," Alicia said in voice full of dread. She glanced back at the others, taking no notice of their shock. "And you guys might not want to follow me anymore. The next hall will be the Dimenticato wing."

"Uh…sure," Tsuna replied cautiously. "I guess we'll see you later then…"

Alicia waved half-heartedly as she walked away without answering (it's not really like she could go anywhere anyway).

Tsuna, Gokudera, and Yamamoto turned to head back to the others as well.

Suddenly a scream filled the air.

"Risa-san!" Tsuna shouted. He and the other two boys ran around the corner to see what befell their friend, and a shocking sight met their eyes.

* * *

><p><strong>Ain't I mean? Now you must all wonder for a whole week before you find out what happened to Alicia.<strong>

**Please review and tell me what you think! **

**Till next time!**


	24. Chapter XXIV

**Okay, so here's chapter 24! But I must warn you, my next chapter may not come out on time, as I have a power outage at my house and I don't know when we'll be getting it back. So I'll be working on the story, but I don't know when I can update. I came with my dad to work just so I could have a few minutes of wifi.**

**Anyways, I hope you like it!**

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><p>Chapter XXIV<p>

Oh the inhumanity.

Surely this meant that hell had frozen over!

No. This was a sure sign that the apocalypse was coming.

Alicia could only stare and at the excruciating sight in front of her.

It was absolutely horrible, possibly the worst thing to happen to her since she broke her leg.

This atrocious sight was almost as bad as Hailey's death in Alicia's books.

How could this happen?

Why? _Why_?

* * *

><p>Tsuna and the other three walked up hesitantly to the teenage girl. Whatever she was looking at must be a terrible sight, for they had never seen Alicia in such a state.<p>

When her sister was badly injured, Alicia sobbed and looked around desperately. But right now…

She looked half dead and extremely shocked.

When they had rounded the corner, they saw Alicia fall to her knees and staring into a room with a couple of rivers of tears falling down her face. And she looked absolutely horrified.

"Ano…Risa…san…" Tsuna reached out a hand tentatively. "Are you okay?"

"Why?" Alicia sobbed suddenly and grabbed a couple fistfuls of her hair.

Tsuna retracted his hand quickly.

"How could this have happened?" Alicia moaned.

"What's wrong Risa?" Even Yamamoto was a little nervous.

"How could they kidnapped my bed!" Alicia sobbed.

The three boys deadpanned. Excuse me? Her bed?

"They took my bed!" Alicia yelled into her hands. "Why couldn't they have taken the computer, or the TV, or something else that was less valuable!"

"Dammit! Don't worry Juudaime like that gun freak!" Gokudera shouted, though he was relieved. He had seriously thought that something bad had happened.

"Ah! It looks like she noticed," a new voice called to another from different room down the hall.

The three boys watched as a new lady walked out of another room and over to their group, Alicia was too transfixed with her missing bed.

"Hey there Tsuna-ni, Hayato-ni, and Yamamoto-ni!" The lady said cheerily. "It's been a while since I've seen any of you! And even longer since I've seen you this young!"

"Eto…" Tsuna said nervously. He couldn't recognize the person in front of them at all.

"Ciaossu, Alison." Reborn hopped up on top of Tsuna's head.

"Alison!" Tsuna exclaimed. "You mean that little girl who lives with Hailey and Alicia?"

"That's the one!" Alison said with a wink.

"It's good to see you again, Tsuna-ni." A man walked over to their group as well and reached out to hold Alison's hand. In his other arm he was carrying a young boy.

"Wait…" Tsuna glanced between the couple. "If you're Alison, then that means you're…"

"This is my daddy, Michael!" The little boy said happily. "And my name is Aiden and I'm two years old! It's great to see the younger you, big brother!"

"Wait! What do you mean, 'she noticed'?" Alicia suddenly demanded, snapping out of her self-pity. "What did you do with my bed!"

"So how are all of you?" Alison asked the group, completely ignoring her older sister figure.

"Ano…" Tsuna wasn't sure what he was supposed to do. Shouldn't they be helping Alicia?

"We're fine enough, considering the situation we're in," Reborn replied.

"That's good." Michael smile softly.

"Oi! What about my bed?" Alicia interjected.

"So how's your training going?" Michael asked, once again ignoring Alicia.

"My student is completely useless. He's not getting stronger as much as we're expecting," Reborn told the three, shaking his head in disappointment.

"Hey, Reborn!" Tsuna protested. "I'm trying my best!"

"Then try harder, Dame-Tsuna." Reborn stomped down on the brunette's head.

"My bed!" Alicia tried again.

Alison giggled a little and turned toward the other boys. "What about you two?"

"Ha, ha. Hailey has us on standby for now." Yamamoto rubbed the back of his head as he smiled.

"Che, she's just being lazy," Gokudera grumbled.

"She has a lot of work. And something probably changed so Hailey is just filling in till you guys can get back on track," Alison said softly.

"The older versions of you guys knew her secret, but right now you don't. So Hailey has to do her best to work around that," Michael added.

"Why don't they just tell us now?" Reborn inquired.

"Because it would make you all very, very sad. And Sissy and Big Sister don't want to hurt you," Aiden chirped.

"And the older versions of you guys only found out after they died anyways," Alison finished.

"Stop giving them hints about our secret and tell me where my god damned bed is!" Alicia roared.

BANG!

Suddenly Alicia was sent skidding across the ground on her face for a few feet and a crowbar was lying innocently on its side where Alicia once stood.

"Itai~. What the hell was that for?" Alicia yelled as she clutched her head in pain.

"Shut up. You're starting to get on my nerves." Danielle walked up and joined the group. "In any case, you won't be allowed to sleep in a bed till you complete your training."

"Whhaaaaaa! Whaddya mean I'm not allowed to sleep in my bed?" Alicia demanded. "This isn't fair! Why am I getting such harsh training requirements?"

"Because you skipped out on training to see what Hailey was doing," Danielle growled. "You only got halfway through the course, not only that, but you also destroyed a ton of our equipment instead of dodging and defending like I told you too!"

"But it's my first reaction when it comes to that stuff!" Alicia argued, curling her hands into fists at her side.

"I don't care how good of an offensive warrior you are, I'm trying to make you remember your defensive training!" Danielle nearly shouted back.

"A good offense is a good defense!"

"It's a good defense is a good offense you idiot!"

"I can overpower you any day!"

"Brains over brawn! I can out maneuver you before you can even make a single attack!"

"I have the flame advantage!"

"We have the same main flame you moron! And your older version already told me everything!"

"I'm not so foolish that I would give away _all_ my secrets!"

"Foolishness aside, your older version trusted me enough to tell me!"

"Shows what you know! Now give me back my bed! I want to get some-"

BANG! BANG!

Alicia and Danielle were sent skidding across the ground and two monkey wrenches took their place.

"Why does everyone keep hitting my head?" Alicia demanded loudly.

"Because you two were making my headache worse." Hailey sighed. "Look, argue all you want. I'm not going to stick around to play referee or to listen to any more of this crap."

"Sorry for not keeping it down, Hailey-nee," Alison said with a small smile.

Hailey sighed again. "It's fine. I regained enough energy for now. A little more and I'll be perfectly fine."

"Heading over to Hibari's side of the base again?" Michael asked.

"Yeah, Kyoya has my favorite tea and he provides a nice, and _quiet_, company.

"You seem to have a good relationship with Hibari in this time," Reborn commented.

"Yeah," Hailey rubbed the back of her neck and frowned, her eyes closed. "We've…come to an understanding of sorts."

"Hailey!" Alicia sprang up and yelled. "I demand to have my bad back!"

"Not my problem. Danielle is your trainer and I've given her permission to do as she sees fit. In any case, see ya." Hailey turned and left with a wave, not even bothering to greet the others.

Alicia watched Hailey walk away in shock. Hailey had never been so cold to her before.

'_Is she _trying_ to make everyone hate her_?' Danielle thought to herself as her superior walked away. She shook her head and turned back to Alicia. "Now back to the training room with you!" Danielle kicked Alicia and sent her flying toward another set of doors down the hall.

* * *

><p>A few days later~<p>

"So…tired…need…bed…_now_…" Alicia collapsed onto a stool in the Vongola kitchen.

"Guess your training has been pretty tough too, huh," Tsuna said sympathetically. "I guess where ever you're sleeping must be really uncomfortable."

Alicia gawked at the brunette wearily. "Are you kidding? Danielle hasn't let me sleep at all! And Danielle made me wear this headband so that every time I start dozing off during a break, this stupid device will send an electric shock." Alicia pointed to the band going across her forehead.

"And you're still alive!" Tsuna shrieked. Just what were theses training methods? They sounded more like torture to him!

"I don't think Danielle came up with the electric headband idea though, and Hailey's too busy to think of new ways to torture me, so I came here to ask a certain someone if they provided the idea." Alicia sent an accusatory glare toward a certain hitman.

Reborn smirked. "I wanted to try that method out on Tsuna, but the voltage was a little too high. Then I heard Danielle grumbling about trying to keep you awake, so I leant her my idea."

Tsuna shivered. While he felt sorry for Alicia's misfortune, he was also very thankful that he didn't have to endure that method of torture just yet.

"GAH!" Alicia fell of her chair.

Reborn's smirk grew wider. "It looks like she fell asleep for a bit."

"Risa-san, are you okay?" Tsuna nearly shrieked in concern.

Alicia stared at Tsuna pointedly.

"Ah, sorry. I guess that much is obvious." Tsuna laughed nervously and helped the girl back onto a chair.

Just then the door slid open and Yamamoto and Gokudera walked in.

"Good morning Juudaime, Reborn-san!" Gokudera called out cheerfully.

Yamamoto smiled and waved a little. "Morning Tsuna, Risa, kid."

Tsuna smiled at the duo. "Good morning Yamamoto, Gokudera-kun."

"I hate mornings," Alicia grumbled.

The three teenage males sweat dropped.

"So what have you two been up to?" Reborn asked the duo.

"Gah! We have nothing to do!" Gokudera complained. "This is such a waste! We should also be training! Juudaime's right hand man can't sit on his butt forever! Whitey is just being lazy and avoiding us!"

The door slid open again.

"What was that about being lazy?" Hailey asked tiredly.

"You are, that's what!" Gokudera shouted.

"Hmph. Think what you want, but I have my reasons." Hailey turned toward her sister. "I have a job for you."

Alicia raised an eyebrow, instantly becoming more awake. "Oh? And what would that be."

"This afternoon, I want you to take Fuuta's place. After you take care of that task, then you can also go around and collect some information for me. Go find that Gioggiolo idiot and take his information device and hack into it. Don't forget to grab his ring. I don't want Tsuna or the others stepping out of this base. I've received reports that there is something else tracking them that wasn't there before and I won't be risking the chance that everything will happen like it's supposed to." Hailey pinched her nose wearily at the thought.

"You can't do that!" Tsuna protested. "Risa-san hasn't slept in days, she's exhausted! If something is going to happen then stop it before it does! I don't want anyone risking their lives recklessly!"

"You mean there's a safe way to risk your life?" Alicia asked sarcastically. "Anyways, I'll be fine. If I don't do this, then Lambo's going to put both you and Fuuta in serious danger. Plus we can probably gain some valuable information and avoid more needless trouble this way. That and keep a certain someone complacent with that ring, correct?" Alicia eyed her sister.

Hailey nodded.

"What about you, Whitey?" Gokudera interjected. "What'll you be doing while gun freak is out there?"

"I'm afraid I can no longer step outside the walls of this base," Hailey said quietly. "Besides, I can only indirectly help the Vongola. The moment Byakuran realizes that I have been passing along information and whatever help I can provide you with, is the moment my own famiglia becomes in danger once more. I have to stay that off for as long as possible. And in any case, my health will no longer allow it anyways. I don't have as much physical strength as you five. I rely solely on my knowledge. Though that doesn't require as much energy, it's still not the type of ability that is needed here."

"It does seem to take a lot more out of us," Alicia commented off-handedly. Though she didn't completely catch everything Hailey meant. She figured her sister was just being humble…hopefully.

"Also, they next set of reports has come in." Hailey handed over a manila folder to her twin. "I don't know about you, but I'm not quite sure how to handle everything now. I don't think I'll be able to treat that man the same way now that I know what he's really like."

Alicia frowned and flipped through the contents quickly, her eyes zooming across the page. As soon as she finished she snapped the folder closed and pinched her nose. "Crap. How am I going to bring myself to beat the shit out of him now? That other idiot, I want to tear limb from limb, but…"

"Perhaps we are too kind hearted for our own good," Hailey muttered.

"We have to get through that mess after this one, only to have _that_ thrown at us? Come on, that's not fair. They should have at least waited till we finished here to send over this stuff." Alicia let her head fall onto the table. "I guess we're going to look at it like they're two different people…they just happen to look the same and have the same name is all…"

Tsuna gaped at the two. "Uh…what are you two talking about?"

"A couple of idiots, that's what," Alicia grunted.

"Some reports I received," Hailey reiterated so that the others could understand. "In any case, none of you have to worry about it. Alicia and I will take care of everything." Tsuna wanted to ask more, but Hailey cut him off. "Don't you have to go meet Lal in the training hall in five minutes Tsunayoshi?"

"Hiiie! You're right!" Tsuna ran out of the kitchen with Reborn riding on his shoulder.

Hailey continued talking before Gokudera and Yamamoto could bring up their own grievances. "Look, I know you two want to be actively training like Tsuna, but I can't allow that. Everyone has their own training regimen best suited to them and right now I need you two to follow my instructions. What I ask of you will benefit you in the long run, so please be patient. I still want you two to allow your body to rest and recover more, but for now Gokudera; I also want you to research your box weapon and think about your flames and their properties. Yamamoto; I want you to move through the movements of the Shigure Souen style slowly. Concentrate on your form and think about how your flame will affect the outcome of the battle. Also visualize combining your flame with your sword, but don't follow through just yet. Okay?"

"Tch, that'll do for now," the silver haired boy grumbled.

Yamamoto laughed. "Gotchya Hailey! We'll get on that right away."

Hailey nodded and walked out of the room.

* * *

><p>"Lemme out! Lemme out! Let me out of here!" Lambo cried. He struggled violently, making the net he was caught in swing back and forth.<p>

"Lambo, what in the world are you doing?" Tsuna asked. Confused as to why the child was hanging in the air.

Lambo stopped whining so that he could answer Tsuna seriously. "I wasn't doing anything. This thing just fell down on me!"

"Liar," Reborn countered.

"Hahi! Lambo-chan! What happened?" Haru asked as she and Kyoko ran up.

"Tsuna-kun, get him down, quick!" Kyoko pleaded.

"Don't bother," Alicia grumbled as she joined the group. "You should leave him there, where he won't cause any more trouble."

"How can you be so mean, Risa-san!" Haru scolded.

"Easily apparently," Alicia said off-handedly, unaffected by the other girl.

Haru frowned at the other girl. "We need to help Lambo!"

"And I'm telling you that he gets what he deserves!" Alicia retorted.

"What do you mean, Risa-chan?" Kyoko asked.

Alicia rolled her eyes. "You'll see in about five seconds."

"Lambo!" Fuuta called out as he and Giannini also ran up to join the group.

"Oh my," Giannini hummed. "He must have triggered the trap."

"Trap?" Tsuna questioned.

"Yes. A top-of-the-line Vongola trap for capturing anyone who tries to force their way through," Giannini explained.

"Are you kidding me? That thing could hold me for five seconds!" Alicia muttered under her breath making Reborn smirk.

"Lambo! You _did_ try to get out!" Tsuna accused.

"Told you so~!" Alicia sang.

Haru sent a glare at Alicia before turning toward the mechanic. "Please help Lambo-chan!"

"Please wait one moment." Giannini reached inside his coat pocket and pulled out a remote. With a press of a button, a mechanical arm came down, its hand carrying a pair of scissors, and cut the main rope of the net. With a small crash, Lambo fell to the floor.

Meanwhile Tsuna gaped at the device. '_Should a 'top-of-the-line' Vongola trap be made from a net and a pair of scissors?_'

"The Vongola side must be pretty pathetic if that's what they call a trap," Alicia snickered under her breath.

"Why were you trying to go outside?" Tsuna demanded, returning his attention to the small cow child.

"I got bored of being in here," Lambo replied unapologetically. He flopped onto his back. "I want to get out! I want to get a lollipop!" Lambo whined loudly.

"Lambo, selfish!" I-Pin reprimanded.

"I can't take it!" Lambo continued to complain.

Tsuna glanced anxiously at Alicia. He could tell that she was nearing her limit of whiney brats.

Kyoko went over and crouched next to the child, holing out a bag of grape candies. "Here you are, Lambo-kun."

Lambo stopped crying to look at the older girl.

"We have candy drops. Will this do?" Kyoko opened the bad and fed Lambo one of the candies inside. "Here you go."

"Gotta stay calm…" Lambo muttered as he chewed the confectionary treat. He seemed to calm down for a second, but then he swallowed. "No! I can't! I want to get a big lollipop!"

"Lambo-kun," Kyoko said sadly, wearily, and a little frustrated.

"Isn't there anything we can give him?" Haru asked the short man.

Giannini folded his arms in thought. "Hmm. We do have some candy prepared to help recover from fatigue-"

"And Lambo certainly doesn't need that!" Alicia interjected.

"But we don't have any lollipops," the mechanic continued.

"I see," Haru said sadly.

"Listen to me!" Lambo shouted. "I need a lollipop!"

"Enough child!" Another voice snapped.

A wire flew through the air and wrapped around Lambo, binding his arms to his sides. With a tug he was sent flying through the air, over to Hailey.

"I can only tolerate so much." Hailey turned her cold gaze to the short mechanic. "Giannini, will you please just construct a machine that'll make lollipops to subdue this cumbersome child?"

"Y-Yes," Giannini stuttered out nervously.

Alicia raised an eyebrow at the scene before her. "Hold it! Since when did Miss 'I can't say no to children' become so cold? Last I checked, you were such a sucker for kids, you took up the first five slots for people Fuuta could go to, to ask for help."

"Ten years will do that to you," Hailey said indifferently.

"Ten years?" Alicia questioned. But she didn't get a chance to ask any further.

"In any case, Fuuta," Hailey turned to look at the other man. "I'm sending Alicia to take care of that wiring problem. So you can stay here."

"Are you sure about that?" Fuuta asked uncertainly. "I'm able to blend in pretty well."

"I don't doubt that Fuuta, but I also need information and this way we can keep you from taking unnecessary risks," Hailey said with a small smile.

"I suppose…" But Fuuta still looked unsure.

"Besides," Hailey turned to look at her sister with a sinister smile, making Alicia shiver a little. "Danielle and I came up with the _perfect_ disguise for Alicia."

That was it. Alicia booked it. Assignment from the head honcho or not, that smile foreboded nothing good in her books.

A rope came out of nowhere and wound around Alicia's slim frame, binding her arms to her side like Lambo before her.

"Oh no you don't," Danielle said with a smirk. "You're not going anywhere. I'm sure you wouldn't want to put all our effort to waste, now would you?" Danielle asked in a sickly sweet voice.

"Yeah Alicia," Hailey chimed in. "It's not very often I get to see you in a _dress_."

"Noooooooooooo~!" Alicia eyes widened comically as she screamed. "You can't make me! No way in hell! Screw you all! You con-artist, release me at once!" Alicia's complaints gradually faded as she was dragged kicking and screaming by Danielle back to the Dimenticato side of the base.

The moment Alicia's voice was out of earshot Hailey dropped her smile. "Now if you'll excuse me."

Kyoko stepped forward to grab Hailey's attention before she left. "What are you going to do with Lambo-kun?"

"I'm going to give him a time out by locking him in an empty closet," Hailey informed them emotionlessly.

"You can't do that!" Haru protested. "Lambo-chan didn't do anything wrong!"

Hailey cocked an eyebrow at this. "Didn't do anything wrong? Tsk. Alicia was right. You two really haven't learnt you lesson. No matter. I have no time to explain every detail to you two. I've already wasted enough time here," Hailey said coldly. She glanced back over at the males of the group and sighed. "I'll show you that you don't have to worry about Alicia. Meet me in your computer room in 20 minutes." She turned and left before anyone else could stop her.

* * *

><p>Hailey walked quickly down the hall till she reached a small playroom. There was already someone occupying the space though.<p>

She smiled. "Hey there Aiden."

"Hi Big Sissy!" The boy called out happily. He dropped his toys and jumped up to give the older girl a hug.

Hailey crouched down so that she was eye level with the younger child. "Hey Aiden, can you do Big Sissy a huge favor?"

"Un!" The child said with a big nod.

This made Hailey chuckle a little. "I need you to watch over Lambo and make sure he doesn't leave the room till I or Risa-nee comes back."

"Aye, aye captain!" Aiden saluted his big sister, puffing out his chest and making a serious face. Only to burst into a fit of giggles afterwards.

Hailey smiled and ruffled the boy's hair before handing over the still yelling Lambo and walking out of the room.

When she finally reached her room she collapsed to the floor in a coughing fit. Hailey slowly got up and pushed herself up so that she could lean against the wall.

She whimpered a bit.

She condition was getting worse and that meant her time was coming even closer to an end.

Hailey was scared. So, so scared.

Tears started making their way down Hailey's face as she allowed the sorrow and pain that she hid from everyone else to overcome her. Her heart gave a jolt when she thought about all that she was leaving behind…and the unknown that was up ahead…

What if she had failed her trial, what then?

She didn't have time to be scared in her previous life because that car had hit her out of nowhere. But now she had time to anticipate the darkness that was approaching. She hated that she knew her own death day.

'_I even have the _honor_ of knowing not only the day, but every detail that comes with it,_' Hailey thought bitterly. She knew everything. The day, the time, the condition, who was going to see it happen, what was happening to lead up to it, everything.

Hailey whimpered a little again.

What happened when you died? What if this whole trial thing was a scam?

Her heart sped up as she panicked about the whole situation.

Why did dying have to be so painful here? Why was it so slow?

Hailey really didn't want to die a third time.

Remembering her past life's death, then her future self's death…

All those memories of the future…the older version of herself had made sure that she had stored her memories, and with the help of Aria before she had died, they had sealed them in a special stone, so that when the younger Hailey was transported to the future and touched the stone, Hailey would gain the memories of her future self as well.

Hailey winced a little when she thought about the on slaughter of emotions that came with gaining those memories.

Those memories and emotions that accompanied them were so painful. It made her feel emotions for the others that she should have never built up. And there was so much regret. So, _so_ much regret and remorse.

She should avoid Hibari, but…

Hailey knew she was being selfish by seeking out his company when she knew that it reminded the man about his lose with her older self, but she just couldn't help it.

Hibari gave her a sense of comfort and peace during all of this turmoil. And he _knew_ her. Hibari knew nearly everything about her, and he didn't persecute her for any of it. He didn't blame her for knowing the events to come. He didn't blame her for knowing her death and not telling anyone. He didn't blame her for making him fall in love…

Hailey pulled her knees into her chest and wrapped her arms around them, then resting her head against them she cried. She cried for her fears, sorrow, and even the happiness. She cried because she was going to hurt Tsuna and Hibari. She cried because she was scared of death. She cried because she couldn't stop Yuni from dying. And she cried because she was going to tear her sister's heart when Hailey died.

She really wanted to tell everyone her secret. But she couldn't put that weight on their shoulders. It wouldn't be fair to them. Everyone was relying on her to be strong.

Hailey wiped her face. She would continue to smile and try her best to place a rift between herself and everyone else.

It didn't matter if they hated her in the end. As long as her passing on wasn't going to hurt them, she would keep up a strong front.

Pretty soon everyone would be able to see just how strong her sister was. Hailey couldn't take the spotlight anymore. Her time in the light was going to be over soon.

So she could deal with her own emotions and help everyone else.

She could force a smile on her face for them.

She would shoulder their burdens.

She would pretend to be strong.

If that's what it took to atone for the pain she would cause them… if it would deal with her guilt… if it would make sure they would be able to smile after all this…

Then Hailey would make sure she looked strong.

If only for a little longer…

Finally sure that she no longer looked a mess, Hailey put on a smile and walked out of her room.

* * *

><p><strong>Extra- Rating the Guys<strong>

Tsuna, Reborn, Yamamoto, and Gokudera were heading toward the kitchen when they came across a hushed conversation. The four stopped walking when they realized it was the three Dimenticato girls and leaned next to the kitchen door so that they could listen in.

"So I heard you have picture for that report," the person the males recognized as Alicia said. "Can I see? I _really_ want to see what he looks like without that-"

Someone hushed Alicia before she could finish.

"Careful, what if someone hears!" Danielle's voice hissed.

"Then why are we talking in such an open area?" Alicia hissed back.

"Because Danielle said we should socialize with the others when they finish with their training," the last voice , they realized was Hailey, said. "Hey before I show you the picture, how would you rank the main guys here?"

"What?...well…" Alicia hummed a bit. "I suppose hyper dying will mode Tsuna and adult Tsuna would be tied for first. Then Yamamoto second. Then regular Tsuna third. Hibari fourth. Ryohei fifth. Then Mukuro sixth. And Gokudera last. "

Yamamoto grabbed Gokudera before he could burst, laughing quietly. Tsuna just kept quiet, his face had taken a _dark_ red hue.

"Well, as for me," Hailey said, "I would have Hibari first. Then regular Tsuna and Reborn-"

"Pedo. OW!" It was obvious both Hailey and Danielle had slapped the black haired girl upside the head.

"Anyways," Hailey sniffed indignantly. "Third would be hyper dying will mode Tsuna. Fourth Mukuro. Fifth Yamamoto. Sixth would be adult Ryohei. Seventh would be the 20 years later lambo. Eighth would be Gokudera when he's all puppy dog like."

Tsuna hushed Gokudera as the boy started to thrash again. But his face was still a little red, but he seemed to be calming down from the shock of Alicia rating him number one.

"Then last would be ten years later Lambo," Hailey finished. "What about you Danielle."

"Nuh uh. Don't drag me into this. Besides I would rather rank the Varia."

"Perhaps another day then," Hailey sighed. "Anyways here's the picture. Even I haven't seen it yet."

There was the sound of rustling papers then the kitchen went very, _very_ quiet.

The four males waited for a bit and were about to go in when they hear Hailey squeal in apparent delight.

"He's so, so…! I can't even describe it. Oh mi gosh! I'm blushing so bad I'm going to have to splash my face with cold water! You two as well!" Hailey squealed some more. Noises that sounded like rushing water started up. With a small squeak the noises stopped. "If only he wasn't already taken!"

"I take it back. I rate him first," Alicia muttered.

"I concur," Danielle chocked out.

"I think we can all agree about that," Hailey giggled.

Reborn smirked. He had a good idea who they were talking about. He then jumped off Yamamoto's shoulder and walked into the kitchen, revealing three very red faced girls.

"Hi Reborn!" The three said together.

* * *

><p><strong>So that's the end! The part where Alicia goes outside will be in the next chapter, though the wait for that chapter is unknown. Hopefully I'll get power back in the next couple of days.<strong>

**I hoped you liked it!**


	25. Chapter XXV

**Ah school, don't you hate me so? Well, my readers, with lot of scraping for spare time, I was able to get this chapter done, Huzzah! If it wasn't for those five reviews, I may have just let it go till next week, so thank you very much to AccessBlade, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, peppermint twertle, AoKuroUsagi16238, and MeganPollen! **

**And to answer a few of your questions MeganPollen: Yes, something big is going to happen, and that's why Alicia is left in the dark. These twins are based off of two people I know in real life (they aren't twins, but they act like it). In any case, I notice that twins get compared a lot, so that's why that's there. However, you are just going to have to wait and find out what that big thing is, sorry!**

**Anyways here is chapter 25! Please read and review at the end!**

* * *

><p>Chapter XXV<p>

The group had been waiting in the meeting room as promised, but Hailey hadn't arrived. After waiting five minutes after the given time, Yamamoto had volunteered to go look for the girl. He set out and was wondering through the unfamiliar hallways of the Twins' side when he had randomly picked a doorway and had gotten lucky.

At first he didn't think he had gotten the right bedroom, but a few pictures and other items lying around told him that he was correct. But, still…

Hailey had always seemed so organized and tidy. So why was her room practically in shambles?

Everything was thrown around wherever, and it looked like many of the items were smashed with brute force. There were tons of paper lying everywhere, most of it torn or crumpled. A few of them were burned. It looked like things were thrown at the wall frequently, and were those claw marks? A table lay mostly broken, but somehow still usable, in the corner. It's chair had stuffing poking out on the sides.

A horrible sound caught his attention.

Yamamoto looked over and saw another doorway slightly ajar. As he walked closer he noticed that it was a bathroom. He opened the door, starting to call out the girl's name, when he was met with a terrible sight.

Hailey was doubled over the sink, throwing up blood.

Yamamoto barely registered that Hibari was standing next to her, holding her hair out of her face. The sight of red dripping from his friend's mouth a little and splattering the basin had shocked him to the core.

"Hailey!"

The white haired girl snapped her head up as she was wiping her mouth. "T-Takeshi…" What little blood that was left in her face, vanished. Hailey turned around and grabbed the front of the baseball player's shirt, staring at the boy desperately. "You can't tell anyone Takeshi! Please! Please don't tell anyone."

"You're vomiting blood. We need to get you to a doctor!" Yamamoto's mind seemed to have gone horribly blank. He only took in a few of Hailey's words, and even then it wasn't enough to piece them together into something coherent in his mind. All his mind could supply was that Hailey was horribly sick, maybe even dying, and that he needed to get her to a hospital asap.

"No, Yamamoto! Please!" Hailey shook her head desperately. "Please! You have to keep this a secret! You can't tell anyone else! Tsuna and Alicia would worry too much, it would be too much of a burden. _Please_."

Hailey wobbled a little. The lack of blood finally caught up to her. She started to fall back, but was caught by Hibari.

"This does not leave this room," Hibari ordered.

"I…But she…" Yamamoto's gaze flickered between the older prefect and the girl in his arms. He couldn't bring himself to ignore his friend's condition, and the blood still coating the inside of her mouth and smeared a little at the corner of her lips weren't helping.

"Please," Hailey whimpered. A stray tear managed to force its way out and down her face.

Yamamoto looked her straight in the eye, his gaze somber. "You've been dealing with this all alone haven't you?...How-…How much longer do you…"

Hailey closed her eyes, but decided to answer him truthfully. "I have about a month left."

"A month!" This was a shock to the boy. He had been hoping that maybe they would have been able to get her back to their time and gotten her to a hospital, maybe even save her. He had been under the impression that if they stopped this Shoichi guy, then they would be able to save the twins and his father from their horrible fate.

"Takeshi, please…" Hailey tightened her hold on Yamamoto's shirt, which she had yet to relinquish.

Yamamoto closed his eyes and took a deep, calming, breath. "Alright. I'll let you be the one to tell them when you're ready."

Hailey sighed in relief and let go of the boy's shirt, nodding in affirmative to his statement. "We need to go to the meeting room. I'm sure they're getting impatient."

* * *

><p>It was decided that Yamamoto would help Hailey to the room, as it would be suspicious if Hibari was willing to crowd with others. When they reached the room Hailey pushed herself away from the boy so that it wouldn't appear like she was ill or weak.<p>

"About damn time whitey!" Gokudera yelled as they walked in.

Hailey smiled weakly. "Sorry, I had some trouble with a few families."

Yamamoto was surprisingly quiet. But he couldn't trust his voice at the moment. He walked over to his seat and sat down.

Reborn eyed the two and tugged his fedora down to hide his concerned expression. He figured that Yamamoto must have caught Hailey off guard and seen her state of health. This was definitely going to be riding on the boy's consciousness, and they could only pray that nothing bad came out of it.

Tsuna frowned a little. Hailey seemed kind of pale and Yamamoto seemed to have something bothering him as well.

Hailey sat down as well. "I'll put the camera's that are focused on Alicia up." She typed in a sequence of codes, and a few more keystrokes later the shopping district popped up on screen.

"Huh? Where's Risa-san?" Tsuna turned toward his Star Guardian.

Hailey offered a tired smile. "See if you can recognize her."

Reborn smirked a little. He had spotted the girl a few moments after the camera view popped up on screen.

The three teenage males scanned the screen, but came up with nothing. They couldn't spot their friend anywhere.

Hailey chuckled and typed another order into the computer. The camera zoomed in a little till the main focus was on a girl wearing a light pink knee length dress, a white cardigan, short white heels, and a white beret. The girl had her black hair hanging down freely and when she turned they saw that she had silvery/gray eyes.

Tsuna blushed. '_That's Risa-san! She looks so..so…girly! But that dress does look really good on her…Wait what am I thinking! I like Kyoko!_'

Hailey tapped a few other buttons so that they could get audio as well.

"Stupid Millefiore. Stupid Hailey and Danielle, and their stupid dress. Stupid information. Stupid dress that restricts my movements. Stupid butt monkey that has the stupid information. Stupid dress. Stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid." Thankfully it appeared that she was quiet enough so that no one else was able to hear her. "Can't fight properly, and even if I do it'll attract those damn perverts. Must not twitch from annoyance. Must not kill Millefiore on sight. Must act like a stupid, idiotic, useless, wussy- ass, weakling of a prick, no good, detestable, deplorable, moronic, failure of a girl. Must not punch the innocent to vent anger."

The teenagers sweat dropped a little.

Hailey chuckled. "As you can see, Alicia doesn't really like dresses. But she's a good actress. If it wasn't for our high frequency microphones, we wouldn't even be able to tell how irritated she really is."

Alicia walked up to a sleazy looking male. He was rather large, wore an olive toned coat over his black shirt, and had his hair pulled back in a ponytail.

"Scusi. You talk Italian?" She asked in broken Japanese.

The younger males were impressed. It truly sounded like Alicia wasn't able to speak Japanese at all.

"Si," the man replied.

Hailey tapped a few buttons to activate the translator.

Alicia sighed in relief. "Thank goodness! I was supposed to meet my friend, but I got lost! Do you think you could help me?"

The man stared at the girl with a hungry, and utterly disgusting, look. "Well, my pretty little miss. What are you in need of my assistance of?"

"I'm trying to find the bakery near the east side of the shopping district, I think." Alicia pulled a cute little thinking face. "At least, I'm pretty sure that's what she said…"

The man pulled her hand forward and kissed it. "The allow me to escort you. By name is Gioggiolo."

"Hmph. There goes his little information device." Hailey smirked.

Alicia clasped the man's hand with a bright smile and a slight blush. "Thank you so very much for your help! My name is Angelica!"

"And there goes his ring." Hailey snickered. That man really was a fool.

Gioggiolo placed and arm around Alicia's shoulders and led her to an empty alleyway, where he was immediately taken out.

Alicia glared at the man. "Yeah, right you bastard. Like any female in their right mind would be thankful to you."

She pulled out the device and started going through the files quickly. It only took her a few short minutes till she gathered the needed data then went off to another portion of the shipping district. At one point the camera switched to a fuzzy, black and white screen. The group had to wait patiently as the wires were mended, but it didn't take too long. Soon a smirking Alicia, looking straight at the camera, popped back up on screen. She mouthed 'I'm gonna get you back for this Hailey', then turned and disappeared around a corner.

Hailey tapped the keyboard once again and the screen turned off. "Is that good enough for you? As you can see, nothing happened. In fact, I would call this rather boring and a waste of time. But you should understand that you have nothing to worry about now, right?"

Tsuna nodded hesitantly, then paused. "What would have happened if Fuuta had gone out?"

Hailey looked over at her charge thoughtfully. "Fuuta? Nothing at all. My worry was that Lambo was going to sneak out and follow Fuuta as well, and the ignorant child would have blown Fuuta's cover and lead that Gioggiolo idiot straight to you."

"Then why ask me to stay behind when you had already made sure Lambo wasn't going to cause any trouble?" Fuuta asked.

Hailey shrugged. "You could have still gone, but I was going to send Alicia out anyways, so I thought that I might as well have her take care of your little technical difficulty while she was at it."

"So where's the stupid cow?" Gokudera asked. "Should you let him out of that closet now?"

Hailey stared at the boy with a slightly incredulous air. "Did you honestly believe that I would _actually_ lock him in a dark and empty closet?"

"But you sounded so serious," Tsuna pointed out.

Hailey snorted. "I may have gained a colder side, but I'm not heartless. I put him in a playroom with Aiden. Danielle should be letting them out any minute now."

Reborn sighed a little. "I thought you wanted to teach him a lesson. With this, the stupid cow will always expect mercy."

"Though the child can be a rather thick thorn in my side, I cannot get him to learn his lesson if everyone else is so soft," Hailey scoffed. "Everyone else must learn that letting him get everything he wants is going to keep his bratty behavior in place, before I can get him to break out of it."

Right then, Alicia barged into the room, already back in her regular set of clothes. "I am _never_ doing that again."

"Never say never~," Hailey sang ominously. "In any case, why don't you spare with Tsuna."

"Oh?" Alicia raised an eyebrow. "Am I finally allowed to fight him?"

"If it's alright with Reborn." Hailey said with a glance to the small hitman.

Reborn smirked. "Go ahead. This'll be a good test to see how much Dame-Tsuna has managed to progress."

Tsuna shivered at Alicia's predatory grin. This was a good chance to see where he stood in this era, but the girl's smile was seriously making him want to run away.

"No backing out, Tsuna," Reborn kicked the back of his student's head. "Now let's get going."

* * *

><p>"So we'll be using the Vongola training room, huh?" Alicia looked around the empty concrete room with bored eyes.<p>

"Yup. This way I can shove off all the repair bills onto Tsuna!" Hailey said with a bright smile.

Tsuna sweat dropped a little at Hailey's response. She didn't even bother to lie. He sighed quietly to himself.

But Yamamoto frowned a little. He never realized how fake her smiles were until now. She was just like he was before. It must be really lonely.

"And I have a little motivator for you," Hailey continued. She handed Alicia another manila folder like earlier.

Alicia raised an eyebrow but took the folder without asking. Her eyes zoomed across the first page, then froze and Alicia promptly fell over. A second later she jumped up looking incredulous, but kept going, only to fall over again when she read something else. She jumped up again and turned toward her sister looking outrageously flabbergasted. "Wha-_What's wrong with his eyes_? What the hell! How can he not make the connection! I mean- Arg! And then he-…but then behind a rock-….the fuck!...How can he be so stupid! He didn't even hide! What the heck!"

"Alicia, dear," Hailey said while trying to contain her laughter. "You've become incoherent."

Alicia went over to the nearest wall and started pounding her head against it while shouting some more incoherent words and sentences.

"Erm…what's going on?" Tsuna asked hesitantly.

Hailey burned the folder and its contents, making sure it all turned to ash and would never be put readable again, before answering. "Alicia has become rather frustrated with you, that's all."

"With me! Why?" Tsuna pointed to himself and exclaimed.

"What was in that folder?" Reborn interjected.

Hailey smiled a little bit. "A piece of the future. And Tsuna, I'd advise you get into your dying will mode. Or Alicia may very well kill you."

Tsuna's gut suddenly screamed at him to duck, and not a second too late as a blast of silver flames barely missed his head. "Hiiiie!"

"If that's how it's gonna be, then I'll knock some sense into you now," Alicia growled, box weapon out and at the ready.

"Get going, Tsuna." Reborn fired a shot.

"This will be a good time to see how much Alicia has improved with her weapon of choice too," Hailey commented.

"Hm? Wasn't gun-freak always a good shot?" Gokudera asked grumpily.

"Well yes, but those guns of hers weren't only designed for shooting," Hailey told them as she watched the two initiate fighting.

Reborn smiled a little. "I see."

Gokudera looked down at the small hitman. "See what, Reborn-san?"

"Those guns were also made for hand to hand combat," Reborn told the other two boys.

Just as he finished explaining Alicia showed the group by blocking one of Tsuna's punches with the top of her gun, which they noticed was built with a guard in a sort of trapezoid shape, and hit the boy with butt of her other rifle. Tsuna fell back a few paces, covering his chin. But Alicia didn't give him any time to rest and charged forward.

"You're slow," the girl commented calmly. She fired another shot and followed with a swift kick to his side, sending Tsuna flying. "And you're flames lack strength and purity. In fact…"

Tsuna got up again and accelerated towards Alicia, trying to get in her blind spot.

Alicia tossed her weapons to the side and grabbed Tsuna's wrists, flipping him over so that she was behind him with his arms crossed. "I don't need any flames or external weapons to fight you, as you are right now." She sighed and released the boy so that she could flick him lightly on the nose.

Tsuna let his flame fade away and gazed down at the ground. He knew that he was still too weak to get them all back to their time. But for this much of a disadvantage… Alicia wasn't even at the peak of her health.

"You've improved since last time, but you still have a lot of room for improvement. The strong fighters will be able to strike and kill you easily." Alicia pressed a spare gun to Tsuna's forehead.

Tsuna's eyes widened a little and he froze.

"However the strong_est_ fighters can strike easily and take down their opponent without killing them." Alicia lowered the gun flicked the boy on the forehead.

Tsuna's eye's softened. Alicia was helping him too. He smiled a little.

"And a good boss won't be so god damn obliviously stupid!" Alicia snapped and slapped Tsuna upside the head.

"Itai!" Tsuna held his head.

"Way to ruin the mood, good job!" Hailey called out, holding up a thumbs up.

"Juudaime!" Gokudera ran over to his boss. "Damn you gun-freak! How dare you hit the tenth!"

"Well as you can see, I just did," Alicia said offhandedly.

"Smart ass," Hailey snorted.

"Eh?" Tsuna looked around, noticing something was wrong. "Yamamoto, what's wrong?"

Yamamoto was frowning at the ground, his hands balled into tight fists. He snapped his head up and turned toward Hailey. "I want to spar with you, Hailey."

A knowing look flashed across her eyes. '_Clever, Yamamoto. You mean to make me show everyone my condition._' She closed them and lowered her head a little with a small smile, before returning her gaze to the boy. "Another time, Yamamoto. But for now you must wait patiently."

Yamamoto's frown deepened. "Why not? You are also a swordsman. This would be a perfect time to show everyone else more about you as well."

Pained sadness flashed across Hailey's eyes. "Another time, but for now I have more work to take care of."

The group watched as Hailey walked out of the room.

Tsuna glanced between the door Hailey had exited and his rain guardian. "Yamamoto…What's going on?"

The baseball lover sighed and shook his head a little to clear his thoughts. He turned with a smile toward his other friends. "Nothing much. I'm just trying to get Hailey to spar with me so that I can improve." This wasn't totally a lie. He did hope to spar with Hailey since he heard that she seemed to be skilled with a blade as well. But that wasn't his true reasoning.

Reborn just stared at the door, still making sure to keep one ear open to listen to the conversation. He knew about Hailey's…illness, but it seemed that perhaps Yamamoto had seen her condition. But from the boy's tone, Reborn can tell that her health was a lot worse off than he had originally thought. So what could he do to make sure it didn't get any worse? The twins were valuable allies and he didn't want to lose either one. He needed more information. Perhaps he would confront Hailey about it, but would she willingly tell him? It wasn't like he could try forcing it out of her with her current status, and that would probably cause more problems than solve.

"Hey, Risa-san," Tsuna called out suddenly, "Why did you and Hailey-chan join the Dimenticato?"

Reborn's attention perked up and he turned to look at the girl as well.

Alicia twitched a little and turned to look at the boy who asked. "Why the sudden curiosity?"

"Well, you two seem to be doing a lot for your family, but you never seem happy with it," Tsuna explained. "So I was just curious why you give so much of yourselves. You must have some reason for wanting to join the mafia."

"Ah, well…" Alicia let her gaze drift as she thought about the events that led up to them 'joining' the Perduto e Dimenticato Famiglia. "We never wanted to join… Before everything that happened, we were just two ordinary girls. I was studying to be a lawyer and Hailey was studying to be a doctor… If you asked us if we would ever get involved in the mafia, we would have laughed… But we weren't really given a choice."

"Why don't you hate all those bastards then?" Gokudera questioned irritably.

"If you didn't choose to become a member then how come you let yourself get recruited? How did they find you two and why did they want you two to join?" Reborn asked. This was a good time to not only learn more about the twins, but also the mysterious Dimenticato.

Alicia smiled sadly, still lost in her thoughts. "We were ripped out of our previous lives and no matter how much we try, we can never regain what was lost. After that we found ourselves at the Dimenticato headquarters. It was because of our special circumstance that we were added among their ranks. I can't hate any of the members because they gave us shelter and a family after we lost our other home."

Their special condition must have been because they possessed moon and star flames was Reborn's conclusion. But that didn't answer all of his questions.

"Is that why you two try so hard?" Yamamoto asked. "Working yourselves to death? What good will come out of that?"

"A chance to see our precious ones again," Alicia answered softly. She unconsciously reached up and placed a hand over her pendant.

* * *

><p><em>Flashback<em>

"_Alicia! Hey Alicia! Look!" Hailey called out as she ran toward her sister. _

_They had been with the Dimenticato for two years already. They were finally starting to grow a little taller and had learned a lot over all those months._

_Hailey finally reached her target and stopped in front of her twin, shoving a pair of necklaces into the other's face. "Look, Alicia! I found necklaces just like out old ones!"_

_Alicia backed away a little so that she could focus more clearly on the objects dangling down from Hailey's hands. Her eyebrows rose up in surprise. "They look…exactly the same…"_

_Hailey nodded vigorously. "Un! I was hoping that there would be a couple in this world so I went searching all over using our connections! Isn't this great? Now it's like we're still connected to mom and dad!" Even though Hailey looked so happy, she also had tears pouring from the corners of her eyes._

_Alicia took one of the necklaces and brushed a finger over the intricate design, feeling the weight and the thickness of the white gold. It was truly amazing how similar it looked to the one from their original dimension. A cherry blossom branch went across the front. Their mother explained that this was to remind them as well as others that you were always learning as you went through life. The kanji for luck was next to the branch. On the back was their favorite flower bent around a small moonstone. The moonstone was for: calming, good for meditation, spiritual guidance and protection, prophesy, and brings happy experiences to those who are sensitive._

_Alicia closed her eyes and held the necklace close to her heart. Each member of their family had this necklace. "Mother…Father…" Alicia whispered._

"_It's perfect right, this way it's almost like we're still together. We still have a link to mommy and daddy." Hailey's voice broke._

_Alicia reached forward and hugged her sister. The two of them cried their hearts out for their situation for the first time since they had come to that world._

_End flashback._

* * *

><p>"Risa-san…are you okay?" Tsuna asked gently.<p>

Alicia took a calming breath before looking back up at the others. "I'm fine."

Tsuna didn't completely believe the girl, but had something else to ask her first. "Risa-san…what will happen to you and Hailey-chan when your mission of protecting us comes to an end?"

Alicia studied the boy. Trying to decide how she should answer that question. "The White and Black Panthers live solely for protecting you and your guardians. So, naturally, when that protection is no longer needed, then the two of us will have served out purpose in this world and will lose our reason for living."

Reborn lowered his head so that his fedora shadowed his expression. "So it's true. All Dimenticato die as soon as their guardianship is over."

"What!" Tsuna looked back and forth between the two. "But-…But you still have a really long time right? The only reason you died in this time was because of the Millefiore, right?"

Alicia shrugged. "I don't know. But I figure I should be able to gain at least a few years if you can successfully take care of all of this. Which brings us back to you training to get stronger. In any case, I really need some shut eye. See you tomorrow or whenever, later." With a short wave, Alicia walked out of the door as well.

* * *

><p><strong>Extra<strong>- After Alicia's Death

Tsuna sighed and placed the papers he was holding back onto the desk. He was exhausted, but he couldn't bring himself to take a break. Alicia had died to make sure this plan went through properly, so he had to make sure he did his part as well. He couldn't let Alicia down again.

There was a soft knock and a familiar silver mane walked in. Gokudera walked in, followed by Kyoko.

"Juudaime, you should take a break. You've been at this for hours."

"I'm fine, Hayato." Tsuna gathered up all the files concerning his secret plan and locked them in his drawer. He pulled another stack of paperwork toward himself and started looking over the contents.

"Tsu-kun, you should rest a little. Let's go out to eat somewhere," Kyoko offered.

"Not right now," Tsuna replied wearily without looking up.

Kyoko reached forward and place both of her hands on top of Tsuna's furiously scribbling one, finally grabbing the man's attention. "Please, Tsu-kun? For me?" It wasn't a very fair tactic, but if it would get the man out of this building, then it would be okay…right? She was helping him, so why did she feel a little guilty?

Tsuna sighed and ran his other hand through his hand. "Alright. Just for a little bit."

Kyoko smiled. "Thank you, Tsu-kun."

The two walked around through the town while they tried to figure out where they wanted to go to eat. It seemed like Kyoko wasn't really in the mood for much, despite being the one who insisted Tsuna go out with her. Eventually they decided where they wanted to try and ambled over at a semi-leisurely pace.

While they waited for their order to be taken and then for their meal to arrive Kyoko tried her best to get Tsuna to talk. But the man seemed oblivious to her effort. Most of his sentences were short and hardly any of them left any room for further discussion.

Tsuna was trying his best, he really was, but he just couldn't bring himself to focus on the woman's words. For wherever he looked he would see Alicia. They had been all over this town together, so it was impossible for him to avoid any of them. If only there was somewhere where he hadn't visited or created some memory with the girl. Maybe then he could talk more openly with Kyoko. But as it was right now, whenever the woman across from him spoke or smiled, Tsuna could see Alicia laughing and teasing him, or perhaps joking about their friends.

When he looked out the window he could see Alicia walking down the street, complaining about her sister yelling at her for sitting on one of her documents, and the ridiculous argument that ensued.

If he shifted his gaze to the park then he could see Alicia sitting on the swing, smiling like a little kid and demanding for him to push her, because she was just _that_ lazy. Or going down the slide on her stomach, despite knowing she was going to fall off the end, and whine about how much the landing hurt. Or else she would be playing on the grass with the kids and her sister, laughing merrily, with a gentle look in her eyes reserved solely for her friends.

Then if Tsuna turned his gaze back inside, directing toward the bar, he could see Alicia laughing loudly, probably at himself, and they would talk and have fun. Or it would be a bad day and Tsuna was comforting her about something that had happened on the mission. Alicia never took deaths well, and like her sister she would have locked herself in her room for a few weeks if Tsuna hadn't forced her to come with him for a walk. Another time it was Alicia comforting Tsuna, and although her words were usually harsh, she knew exactly what to say to get him back up on his feet.

Tsuna was seeing and hearing the other everywhere, but all of his memories would flash forward to _that_ day. The sickening scent of her blood would fill his nose and for a second he could see her blood on his hands, like it was fresh. But he never saw her dead face, nor the empty look that probably appeared behind her closed eyelids. She had died peacefully and made sure that Tsuna wouldn't be haunted by that piece of self-inflicted guilt.

Alicia always knew what to do…

She knew everything…except how to stop herself from dying and breaking his heart.

* * *

><p>Kyoko and Tsuna walked back in silence till they reached the base entrance, there Kyoko finally had enough and stopped the other man from entering.<p>

"Tsu-kun, I can't take any more of this!" Kyoko said with a frown as she gazed directly into the other's eyes.

Tsuna blinked in surprise. "Wha-"

But he was silenced as Kyoko pressed her lips to his. "Tsu-kun, Risa-chan wasn't the only one who cared about you." Kyoko took a step back and smiled sadly. "But that's all I'm going to do. You fell in love with Risa-chan and I'm going to respect that. But don't you think that your current actions would make her sad? You said that Risa-chan said that even though she knew she was dying, she smiled and said that she was thankful for all the time that you and everyone else spent with her. You also said that she wanted you to smile more, like you used too. Tsu-kun, this means that she didn't want you to fake your smiles. She really wanted you to be happy."

Tsuna started at the orange haired girl numbly.

Kyoko's smile widened a bit, but gained more sorrow as well. "I can't forgive her for dying, leaving you behind and not telling at least you about it. But I also know that she did it so she wouldn't burden everyone with that information, and that if we were angry with her then we wouldn't be as sad. I'm also aware that she must have been really lonely, and you'll only make her feel worse if you allow yourself to drown in your misery, Tsu-kun. So try to lighten up a little. I'm sure better days will come. You just have to try letting the rest of us in."

Tsuna lowered his head, his bangs covering his expression. He stayed there for a short while before looking up and smiling, a small genuine smile. "Thanks Kyoko…I needed that…And I'm sorry."

Kyoko nodded and the two of them headed inside.

* * *

><p>Later that night as Tsuna drifted off to sleep, he couldn't help but imagine what Alicia would have done if she saw him now. He chuckled a little. Alicia would have definitely yelled at him and kicked him around calling him something along the lines of a pansy and a few other insults. She then would have finished with a good slap to the face and tell him off sternly for his behavior and that if it didn't stop soon, then she would beat him into the next year or at least till he could tell up from down.<p>

Alicia knew how to keep his heart from completely shattering after all.

And with that final thought, Tsuna fell asleep.

* * *

><p><strong>Okay, I nearly brought myself to tears when I was imagining all of their emotions. This turned out to be a rather depressing chapter, yikes. If you want something a little more light hearted to read, then you can check out my other story <span>Vongola Academy<span>.**

**Well I hoped you liked this chapter! Please review and tell me what you felt!**


	26. Chapter XXVI

**Late update, I know. I have three words for you: School is Hell. I didn't think I would be able to update this week at all, but thankfully I had already started writing this chapter early.**

**Just to let you guys know, this is more of an informational chapter. You get to find out a little more about the twins as well as the Dimenticato. I also wanted to develope some relationships a little more. The pace will start picking up next chapter.**

**Thanks to the few who left me a review! I got a chapter out this week, instead of waiting till I have a little more free time, just for you guys! Also a big thank you to the fav's and adds!**

**Hope you like it!**

* * *

><p>Chapter XXVI<p>

"Thanks for the food," the group said together once they had finished their breakfast.

"The food was good today too," Reborn complimented.

"That's good!" Haru replied thankfully.

"Haru and I-Pin are in charge of washing dishes today," Bianchi informed the group.

"We're on it!" I-Pin called out.

Haru nodded in agreement. "Leave it to us!"

"Then I'll go get Lal's dishes," Kyoko offered.

Haru smiled appreciatively. "Please!"

"Fuuta, play with us!" Lambo demanded.

"Alright," he blinked as he realized how overgrown Lambo's afro had become. "Your hair has grown a lot. Want me to cut it for you?"

"Ah!" Lambo jumped up. "No~!" He then ran away screaming.

"Now then, I guess I'll go train," Tsuna said while stretching with a smug sort of smile.

"You work so hard every day, Tsuna-san!" Haru smiled with her hands clapped together next to her face. She pulled her hand down in front of her, folding her fingers. Sparkles and a haze seemed to appear around her. "Shall I make you a special lunch from your wife?"

"N-No! That's alright!" Tsuna immediately rejected. "It's just a short trip down the elevator! Besides…from my wife? _Really_?..."

The door slid open and Alicia walked into the room with a huge yawn. "Man, what a pain."

"Ah, good morning Risa-san," Tsuna said, his smile returning.

"What brings you in this time?" Reborn asked.

"Hailey sent me to send for Yamamoto and Gokudera. But…" Alicia yawned again. "I also wanted to speak to Tsuna for a bit, so I decided to make a detour to the kitchen."

This caught Haru's attention. "Talk to Tsuna-san about what?" She demanded.

"Get off my case Miura-san," Alicia replied grouchily. "Oh, and Reborn, Hailey's waiting for you with Lal Mirch too. I'll send Tsuna down when I'm done."

Reborn nodded before he hopped off his seat and left.

"What did you want, Risa-san," Tsuna asked.

A vein popped on Alicia's forehead as she watched Haru with a hand cupped around an ear, obviously eavesdropping. She sighed and pulled Tsuna out of the kitchen. '_I'm just going to give myself a headache if I try to deal with her_.' After they were a short distance away, she slowed down to a walk and released the brunette. "So how are you holding up?"

"Huh?" Tsuna blinked in confusion. "I'm just fine. You and Hailey-chan have been taking all the damage. So it's me who should be asking about your wellbeing."

Alicia frowned and stopped walking. "That's not what I meant."

Tsuna stopped walking as well and turned around to look at the girl.

"I mean…how are you holding up with everything that you know about the future and all. It must be tough for you, knowing that you have to become strong enough to defeat Irie Shoichi so that you can go back to your time."

Tsuna looked down so that his bangs covered his eyes. "It's tough… but with my friends by my side, I know I can do it." Tsuna looked back up with determination in his eyes.

Alicia grimaced a little, then crouched down and hugged her knees. "Hey, Tsuna…How far would you go to get the power to help your friends?"

"What do you mean?"

Alicia studied the boy for a bit before continuing. "Well…Hailey was unlucky enough to see the you of this time die right in front of her. And you did that so that you could protect your friends…I just… don't want you to give yourself away a second time."

Tsuna smiled softly and placed a hand on the other's shoulder. "Thank you, Risa-san."

Alicia frowned a little more. "Tsuna, it's your light that everyone follows. So promise that you won't let the darkness swallow you up. Promise that you'll always come back. _Promise_…"

Tsuna studied the black haired girl's eyes before nodding. "I promise."

Alicia finally dropped her scowl and smiled as she stood up. She ruffled the brunette's hair. "I'm glad. You better remember!"

"Hai, hai," Tsuna replied.

And the two continued on their way toward the training basement.

* * *

><p>"What did you call us down here for whitey?" Gokudera grumbled.<p>

"Well, I was thinking that we could start your training today, but if you have something better to do…" Hailey trailed off.

"What! No, let's get started!" Gokudera reached for his pocket to pull out his box weapon.

Hailey held up a hand to signal for the boy to stop. "Hold on a second, we still have to wait for the others. You know, like Tsunayoshi. Shouldn't you wait patiently for him?"

"I'll always wait for Juudaime!" Gokudera shouted like she had questioned his loyalty.

But Hailey just ignored the boy.

"How are you feeling today, Hailey?" Yamamoto asked.

Hailey smiled softly. "Much better than last week, thanks. You don't have to worry Yamamoto, but your concern is greatly appreciated."

The elevator door opened again to reveal Lal Mirch and Reborn.

"So we're just waiting for Tsuna and one other, correct?" Hailey stretched a little, popping a few of her joints. "So what do you think of my idea, Reborn."

"Not bad," the hitman replied. "I was thinking about that anyways. Are you sure he'll come?"

"Oh, he'll come alright. After what I agreed to, he'll definitely do it." Hailey sweat dropped at the thought of what she had to bargain with.

The elevator dinged open again and Tsuna along with Alicia came out.

"Yo!" Yamamoto called out.

Gokudera looked around with a bright smile. "Good morning, Juudaime!"

"You two!" Tsuna nearly shouted in surprise. "What are you two doing here?"

"Hailey says were going to get back to physical training starting today," Yamamoto explained.

"About damn time!" Gokudera said again.

"All three are present then," Reborn said, gaining the others' attention.

"As I've mentioned, you'll be starting a new training course today," Lal said to Tsuna. "It's called the 'Individual Assault Training Program'"

"Individual… Training…?" Tsuna muttered, curious about how his training regimen was going to be altered, as he was training alone previously.

Reborn decided to address the other two teenage boys as well. "Just like Tsuna's been receiving a one-on-one training with Lal Mirch these past ten days, you'll each get your own home tutor to train you, just like during the Ring Conflict. Like for example, the one I'm training is…" Reborn trailed off ominously as he pulled out a gun, "Yamamoto."

The raven haired boy pointed to himself in surprise.

"EH?" Tsuna screeched in alarm. "Reborn is teaching Yamamoto? Is that alright?"

But the baseball player just laughed light heartedly. "Looking forward to it!"

Gokudera just grunted moodily. "I suppose my tutor should be Shamal again, but where would I find him?"

Hailey and Alicia twitched. They hadn't been expecting someone to ask about that man. The others turned toward the twins, already aware that they knew.

Hailey sighed. "Shamal is dead. He was ambushed by a large group of Millefiore a little over three months ago."

Gokudera was taken aback. He hadn't been expecting that. That old geezer always seemed to be able to make it out of anything despite how many times the women he flirted with tried to kill him.

"So who's Gokudera-kun's tutor?" Tsuna asked, trying to remain strong for his friend, despite the shock he felt from that piece of information.

"I will be in charge of Hayato." The three boys jumped a little and turned to see Bianchi.

"B-Bianchi!" Tsuna shouted in surprise while Gokudera collapsed due to a stomachache. "G-Gokudera-kun!"

"Th-This…must be a joke…" The silverette mumbled.

The pink haired woman explained her reasoning for why she was a compatible tutor for her half-brother and promised an award consisting of something from their father. It was then that Gokudera looked up again, only to fall back to the ground from the shock of seeing his sister's face again.

"This isn't going to work at all," Tsuna exclaimed worriedly. "We better stop this now."

"A lot of thought process went into deciding who was paired with who, Tsuna," Hailey said calmly. "Besides…"

"You should devote yourself to your own training," Reborn finished off and shot his student.

"O-Oi…Tsuna!" Yamamoto called out when Tsuna went flying back a few feet.

But a moment later the brunette stood up in his hyper dying will mode, revealing a stronger flame than what the other two remembered seeing last.

While the group continued chattering, Hailey walked forward and grabbed her sister's elbow.

"Oi! What are you doing?" Alicia whisper shouted.

"You don't want to be standing there when that guy gets here," Hailey muttered back.

Sure enough, a spiked ball shrouded in purple flames whizzed through the spot Alicia was standing, in front of the elevator, and towards the brunette. Tsuna dodged and landed on the wall, raising his hands to defend himself again. The blast of clashing flames was enormous.

"If you don't pay attention, you will die."

Tsuna's eyes flickered away from the spiked ball for a second. "It's you!"

"I'm going to pry open all of your abilities," Hibari said calmly and emotionlessly.

Hailey's eyes flickered to the side as she watched Fuuta, with Lambo riding on his shoulder, walk into the training room. But she paid no mind to them.

"It's exactly as the omnivore and infant said," Hibari muttered. "This level of power is a far cry from your future self."

Tsuna tried to freeze the spiked ball and clouds, but they kept multiplying until he was encased in a giant purple spiked sphere. The airtight globe of cloud flames detached from the wall, due to its weight, and crashed into the ground.

Alicia yawned and started to walk away. "I assume you're going to stay here, but I'm going to go get some grub. I'll be back when Tsuna is about to break out of that thing, see ya."

Hailey nodded in acknowledgment and turned to see Reborn walking over.

"I've taken your theory into concern and I agree. Do you wish to come as well?"

Hailey shook her head. "When Yamamoto completes your requirements, then I shall come and tell him one of my secrets."

Reborn smirked. "You already know Yamamoto is going to be able to do it?"

Hailey smiled softly. "I think you believe so as well. Why would you have picked him otherwise?"

Reborn continued to smirk, but did not refute her remark. He bid her good-bye and walked out of the training room.

Hailey took a calming breath before she walked over to join Lal Mirch and sat down. This was going to take a while.

* * *

><p>Alicia sighed. This was such a tiring ordeal. Everyone was so tense and the air was stifling with all the negative emotions hanging in the air. She could understand her sister as well as Tsuna and his guardians, but honestly, everyone else really needed to lighten up. Then again, it's not like she could tell them that she knew everything was going to turn out alright. Sure, some things had happened here that hadn't happened in the original plot line, but then again, Hailey and herself was an anomaly as well, so it all evened out in her opinion.<p>

But Alicia couldn't understand why Hailey had suddenly become so much warmer to Kyoko and Haru. Hailey had always put on a smile and acted nice toward them, but now she was being genuinely kind and caring. What had changed? Kyoko from this time seemed just as weak and Haru was just as irritating as ever.

'_I mean really! She even had the nerve of slapping me for something I didn't do!_' Alicia thought indignantly as she stalked down the corridor.

Alicia was still peeved about the whole thing. The older Haru had accused her of stealing Tsuna only to hurt him in the end. What did that even mean? Sure she knew that she was going to die before everyone in the Vongola, but she wouldn't have done anything to hurt them extra, she was sure of it!

So why did older Yamamoto look at her with such melancholy eyes as well?

Alicia grabbed fistfuls of her hair and shook her head in frustration. All of these thoughts were making her dizzy.

There seemed to be a secret about herself and Tsuna from this time frame, but Alicia couldn't seem to find out what it was. When she had asked Danielle about it during a break in her training, the older woman had asked if she was sick in the head or something. Hailey had laughed at her, well giggled a little (but still! A laugh is a laugh, no matter how small!). So obviously Hailey knew nothing about it. There was no way she'd ask Tonfa Boy and owe him a favor. So who else was there?

…Unless…Alicia could get into Tsuna's office and find out for herself…

'_That's it!_' Alicia thought excitedly and changed directions.

No one in the base knew where Tsuna's office was, so Alicia could sneak in there and snoop around unnoticed! And to make things better, everyone was busy so there was even less of a chance that someone would walk in while Alicia was looking around.

Looking around, to make sure no one was in the vicinity, Alicia then quickened her pace and headed toward the section of the base where Tsuna's office was located. Though the system was a little more complicated than she had anticipated, breaking into the office was easy and shutting down the alarms was no problem as well. Perhaps either she or Hailey had designed the system for him, but no matter. It was one of their simpler system of codes.

She snuck over to the desk and the leather chair, all the while looking for more alarms and cameras. The drawers built into the desk had a basic lock. No digital code, fingerprint, voice recognition lock…just a lock and key…

Alicia deadpanned a little. How simple. Was Tsuna that sure that no one would be able to break into his office? He really underestimated her and Hailey then. That or he trusted them enough to stay away and leave him his privacy…

Nah. They've never given him a definitive reason to completely trust them.

Picking the lock was a quick and easy job. And soon Alicia was rifling through his drawers, only to find…nothing of interest.

"What is this!" Alicia whisper shouted. "This is all documents, files, and crap! Where's all the juicy personal stuff? Doesn't he have a journal or something?"

Nothing. All that work to find absolutely nothing. After going through the other drawers and hidden spaces she gave up and walked out of the office, leaving it the way she found it. How disappointing.

But Tsuna wasn't the type to be able to hide anything like that, so why couldn't she find anything?

Had someone else gotten there first?

Perhaps Tsuna had given his private files to someone else to watch over. But then, who?

Who would Tsuna trust enough to watch over his files?

He couldn't have given it to Yamamoto and Gokudera because those two knew nothing of his plan. So then…Hibari? But would Hibari watch over everything without destroying it? He could have given it to Hailey, seeing as she did arrive while he was still alive, but why? Did Hailey know something, she (Alicia) didn't? Maybe Tsuna made Hailey promise not to snoop and not to let Alicia go through his stuff as well. Yeah, Hailey was too goody-goody to break a promise, especially since she was going to have to watch the person die.

Alicia sighed in frustration. If it was Hailey, then she wasn't going to be able to rummage through older Tsuna's personal files. With that in mind, she pouted all the way back to the training room.

She walked back into the training room just in time to hear Tsuna shouting. "So it's begun." She walked over to Hailey who was hugging her knees and head, shivering a little.

"The oxygen is nearly out. Both his mental and physical states are reaching critical levels," Kusakabe commented.

"This won't achieve anything!" Lal protested. "Cease this training at once!"

Hailey gripped herself tighter and whimpered a little. Tsuna's health was giving both of the twins a headache. They could feel his physical and mental state deteriorating.

Alicia tuned out everyone else in favor for walking up to the sphere on the opposite side of Hibari. She grimaced as Tsuna shouted some more for the trial to stop. She placed a hand on the orb. "Come on Tsuna. You promised."

* * *

><p>"<em>Do not turn your eyes away. This is the destiny of the successor to the Vongola."<em>

_The sky flames masks flickered ominously. Their words word cold, so heartless. It was too dark to see any of them clearly, but just light enough to know that he was surrounded._

"_This is the purpose of the life you were given."_

_More images of the Vongola's sins flashed through his mind. Their actions were so cruel, he could never commit the same actions._

"_I refuse! I can't do such cruel things!" Tsuna shouted. He clutched his head._

"_That is the price we must pay for the power we wish for."_

"_If it's great power you want, you must also have the resolution to inherit our great history."_

_How many of these people were there? _

_Who were they? _

_Maybe he should just give in. He needed to become stronger in order to get all of them home right? He should be willing to do anything if it meant he could protect everything. If it gave him the power to do so, then it should be okay…right?_

'Tsuna, it's your light that everyone follows,' _Alicia's voice burst into Tsuna's mind, reminding him of their earlier conversation._ 'So promise that you won't let the darkness swallow you up. Promise that you'll always come back.'

'That's right. I promised Alicia that I would think of a way to protect everyone without sacrificing myself.'

"_I refuse," Tsuna panted. "I thought I could do anything, if it meant I could protect everyone…But…This…I don't need…This kind of power!" Tsuna looked up determinedly. _

_The group started a bit, shocked from the boy's answer._

"_What?"_

"_If you want me to inherit such mistakes…Then, I…" Tsuna curled his hand with the Vongola ring into a fist in front of him. "I will destroy the Vongola!"_

* * *

><p>Alicia smiled a little and backed away from the box weapon. Tsuna was going to burst that bubble pretty soon, and she'd rather avoid getting impaled by one of the flying spikes. A moment later the orb cracked then blew apart in a giant explosion, revealing Tsuna wielding his Vongola Gloves, Version Vongola Ring. The blue backs glistening in the light.<p>

He ignited his flame and stared in wonder at the new flame. It was such a clear and vibrant orange. It was strange, unpredictable, but also very strong.

For some reason, Alicia felt extremely relieved. She ran forward and tackled the boy in a tight hug, catching him and everyone else by surprise. Tsuna was knocked off his feet and nearly out of his hyper dying will mode.

"I'm glad," Alicia whispered. "So, _so_ glad."

Tsuna, at a loss for words, hesitantly wrapped his arms around the girl.

Hailey stood up and walked over to Hibari with a smile. "You're not going to interrupt them? This is your chance to fight Tsuna, fresh after gaining a new power."

"Hn." Hibari crossed his arms, but didn't make any move to attack the brunette.

Hailey smiled a little wider and closed her eyes, clasping a hand around her wrist behind her back. Hibari knew how painful it was for older Tsuna, so he could at least let the younger version of the carnivore he respected have some time with the black omnivore. It wasn't going to last anyway.

"You idiot!" Alicia pulled away and smacked Tsuna upside his head. "You considered giving in for a second, didn't you?"

Tsuna backed away several steps as Alicia pulled out her box weapon. "Alicia, calm down!"

"Calm down, my foot! I'll kick your ass for even letting that thought process cross your mind!" Alicia summoned her guns and pointed one of them at the boy. "Besides, this will also be a good time to test your new flame. So if you know what's good for you, I suggest you fight back. After all, I can't guarantee that you'll be able to move ever again if you don't."

Tsuna took a calming breath and stared at the girl. She was dead serious; he could read it in her eyes. He held a hand slightly behind and lit his hard flames, seeming to disappear as he propelled himself forward towards the girl.

"Fnn. Your sister is quick to start a fight as always," Reborn commented as he hopped up onto Hailey's shoulder. "You must be disappointed that you aren't the one fighting Tsuna right now."

The group watched as Tsuna attempted to dodge Alicia, only to nearly self-destruct from the sudden surge of power from his new flame.

"Hn." Hibari smirked. "The white omnivore will make for it in our fight."

"Eeh!" Hailey exclaimed. "W-Wait a second Kyoya…Y-You don't mean right now right?" Hailey started to back away slowly, holding her hands up in front of her in surrender. She laughed nervously, hoping that Hibari wasn't serious.

But the older prefect's smirk foreboded of nothing good for the girl. And to make matters for her worse, Hibari grabbed her arm, just above the elbow, and started dragging her out of the room.

"Hm? Where are those two going?" Alicia asked as she walked up to Reborn, who had jumped off of Hailey's shoulder when Hibari started to drag her away.

Reborn looked up with a smirk. "He's going to fight Hailey since you fought Tsuna in his stead."

"Oops." Alicia laughed nervously. "Well, this should be interesting to watch. We should all go to watch."

The ding of the elevator caught their attention and they looked around to see Yamamoto. "Ah! H-Have you seen the kid?"

"Yamamoto Takeshi" Hibari strode right past the boy, dragging Hailey along with him. "Who knows."

"Ah! Hey Little Guy!" Yamamoto called out as he spotted Reborn.

"Sorry to keep you waiting." Reborn headed over to the baseball nut.

"Oh, Tsuna looks okay too! Aahh, thank goodness!" Yamamoto said happily.

Reborn hopped up onto the boy's shoulder, his fedora poking the other's eye a little. "Let's hold off your training a little longer. I want to watch Hailey and Hibari kill each other."

Yamamoto laughed. "Okay."

"Sawada! Stop lazing around! You'll never be able to face Hibari at this-!" Lal stopped as she realized Tsuna was sleeping. "…What to do with this guy…Well after that trial…I can't blame you. **You think I'd say something like that**?" Lal grabbed Tsuna by his collar and started slapping him viciously. "If you continue like this, you'll never be able to do anything like invade the Millefiore or kill off Irie Shoichi! _**Wake up**_!"

"Lal is really strict," Fuuta said quietly.

"But didn't she say she was no longer teaching Tsuna?" Yamamoto asked with a nervous smile.

Alicia was holding her gut as she laughed at the poor boy. It wasn't till Lal had dropped Tsuna, that she walked over and threw and arm over his shoulders. "Come on Lal, let's go watch Hailey's and Hibari's fight! This will be good for Tsuna to watch too!"

Lal glared at the girl for a bit, but conceded that she had a point. She sighed. "Very well, but we're going back to training right after."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Now come on!" Alicia dragged Tsuna out, her arm nearly choking the boy.

* * *

><p>Alicia led them all to one of the Dimenticato's training room. When they entered they could see Hailey discarding her dress shirt, leaving her in a tank top and arm guards over her gloves. The only bandage left on her was the medical eye patch. Both Hailey and Hibari had already pulled out their weapons.<p>

"What's that on Hailey's arms?" Alicia asked. "I've never seen her fight with something like that before."

"Those are elbow blades. They're basically like tonfas except one side is sharp like a sword," Danielle explained. "She started training with them a little over five years ago and now they're her weapon of choice."

Alicia scrunched up her nose. "When did David or Zach have time to teach her that?"

"Actually it's Hibari who taught her," Danielle said calmly. "I've also heard rumors that she would spar with Rokudo Mukuro from time to time too."

"Huuuuuuh!" Tsuna and Alicia were blown away by those pieces of information.

'_Oh? They're flipping out._' Danielle observed with amusement.

Alicia raised her hands and slapped her cheeks to get her mind back in order. "Don't lie!"

Danielle raised an eyebrow at that. '_That big of a shock, huh? Though that wasn't a bad reaction_._ Quite amusing. I should try doing that more often._' She smirked. "I'm not lying. You can ask her yourselves…after they finish their spar."

"I don't get to see her fight to often so this should be good," Lal commented. "You should watch carefully Sawada. This is a good chance for you to observe two skilled fighters go at it."

"No flames for this fight, you good with that?" Hailey asked, not really caring whether the audience heard or not.

"Hn," Hibari smirked. "I'll bite you to death."

"You can try," Hailey taunted.

Silence pervaded the room, then both dashed forward to strike. Both blocked and attacked in equal amounts, trying to gain the upper hand. Sparks flew as metal clashed against metal. Their movements were swift and carried them from one corner to another as they sent a flurry of attacks. There was no time for either to rest. Both were set on defeating the other.

There was a resounding clang of metal and the two pushed away from each other.

Now that they had stopped moving, the others could see a dribble of blood coming down from a corner of Hailey's lips and another one coming down from a cut on Hibari's cheek.

"Hmm, it seems I have gotten a bit slower. This deskwork is making me fall out of shape, if a guardian can wound me like that." Hailey smiled as she taunted the man in front of her. She wiped away the thin crimson ribbon of blood going down her chin.

"Hn. That's why you're not a carnivore."

"Is that so? Well I can't let a guardian talk that way about me since I'm a boss, now should I? After all, it would be a disgrace to my family if I can't even defeat the likes of you," Hailey simpered coyly.

The two charged toward each other again.

"You know, I don't get it," Alicia said slowly. "Hailey and Hibari are basically throwing insults at each other. So why hasn't Hibari gone out of control and tried to kill everyone in the base yet?"

"It seems that the Hailey and Hibari of this time have a close relationship," Reborn pointed out. "They can tease each other good naturedly because they recognize each other's combat ability."

"I guess." Alicia watched the two throw a few more strikes before continuing. "Lal's right, this is a good fight for you to watch, Tsuna. She'd also be a better sparring partner for you than I would."

"Hm?" The brunette looked over at the teenage girl. "Why's that?"

"Hailey's more of a hands on fighter, which is why all of her weapons tend to be for close range," Danielle explained.

Alicia nodded. "I, on the other hand, like to fight using a combination of close and mid range fighting styles. That's why my box weapon is such a perfect fit. When I go into a fight, not only do I want to grab the opponent's attention, but I want to be able to take as many down as I can from a distance, then I move on to fighting with hand to hand combat. Hailey is a more subtle fighter. She'd rather sneak up and take them down quickly and quietly. She likes the solid feel that she has taken down, whereas I just know from a shot whether or not it'll hit its mark."

"But I've seen her fight with a bow and arrow," Tsuna mentioned.

"Mm, yeah, but archery is more of a hobby for her," Alicia explained.

Hailey blocked a tonfa to her head and aimed a kick to Hibari's torso. The cloud guardian caught her ankle and smirked at his advantage, pulling Hailey's ankle into the air so that she was no longer standing. Hailey hooked the blunt side of her elbow blade around the man's ankles and used the momentum and her own strength to pull Hibari's feet out from under him, forcing him to release her. Both flipped away and jumped back in for another series of strikes.

"What other weapons do you guys know how to use?" Tsuna asked.

"Too many to count," Danielle and Alicia answered bluntly together.

"It's a requirement, something that every member of the Dimenticato learn," Danielle explained.

"That's why I can fight with a sword, even if it isn't my weapon of choice." Alicia hissed a little when Hailey was pushed away into the wall, but changed to a smirk when Hailey landed on the concrete and pushed away and using the height leverage to her advantage.

Danielle decided to clear things up a little more for the boy, who still looked perplexed. "You see, for us, we never know what type of situation we'll be thrown into. So to make sure we're prepared, we're taught how to handle all sorts of weapons."

"Which means, Hailey also knows how to use a gun," Alicia added. "And while she's a good shot, she doesn't like the idea of leaving everything up to a small piece of metal. However if she has her weapon taken away and the only thing nearby for her to use is a gun, then she can still take out the enemy. It's just like how I know how to fight with a sword, but I tend to avoid it when I can."

Danielle snickered. "I heard that when you we're learning how to fight with a single edge sword, that you cut yourself instead of the dummy several times."

"Sh-shut up!" Alicia's cheeks became splattered with pink.

"That's not so bad. When I was first learning how to shoot a gun, I shot the person behind me instead." Everyone looked around to see Hailey and Hibari walking over.

"Oh? Done already?" Alicia asked her sister, who nodded in return. Hailey waved to Hibari as he left the training room.

"You shot the person behind you? Seriously?" Lal deadpanned. "You sure it wasn't the rebound?"

Reborn smirked.

But Hailey just shrugged. "No rebound, but don't ask me how it happened. It just did."

"But how did you cut yourself, Risa-san? Didn't you practice with a wooden or bamboo sword first?" Yamamoto asked.

Alicia shook her head. "We never start out with an imitation. David and Zach had a firm belief that you'll trick yourself into the habit of doing things the way you did with the practice weapon. The weight and structure of the real thing is always different than the imitation, so to make the real thing is what's ingrained in our memory, we always start out with the actual weapon."

"That sounds dangerous," Tsuna said with a horrified shudder.

"It also teaches you not to do whatever it was that got you hurt," Hailey further elucidated. "Alicia never did the same move that got her cut and I never held the gun as loosely again."

"So why do you prefer those elbow blades?" Tsuna asked curiously.

Hailey hummed a bit. "I suppose it's because I like the feel of the weapon being a part of my arms, but I prefer a weapon with a sharp edge to a blunt one like a tonfa."

"So what's wrong with guns?" Lal asked.

Hailey scrunched up her nose. "With weapons like guns I tend to take too much satisfaction when I hit my target. When I take up a gun, or even my bow and arrow, I automatically aim for a vital part of the body. I was trained to the point where all my shots will inevitably be a kill shot, and I don't like that. In one particular training session, Alicia stood on top of a speeding vehicle and was able to shoot all the targets in a way that would incapacitate them, but not necessarily kill them. In that same exercise I took out all the targets as well but there was no chance that, if they were real people that any of them would have survived."

"You stood on top of a speeding vehicle!" Tsuna shouted in disbelief.

"It's a good way to test you accuracy when the car beneath you is making sharp turns and the wind is throwing off you aim," Alicia commented.

"Not to mention a test of your balance," Danielle added. "If you're not careful the combination of wind and the turns will send you flying, seeing as we weren't strapped down and all."

Tsuna looked like he could faint. There was no way he would even consider doing what these girls had done.

"So what's the difference with a blade?" Reborn asked, though he already knew the answer.

"I can be more analytical when I attack someone at a close range. A blade or staff is connected to me so I can feel what part of their body I hit and how that will affect them in battle," Hailey explained.

"So how many weapons did you train with before you decided that you liked the ones you have?" Yamamoto asked.

"I think a better way to explain that would be if we told you our background a little more." Alicia looked over to her sister to see if it was okay.

Hailey sighed, but nodded. As long as her sister didn't say too much, then a little information about them should be harmless.

"Well you see, when we first get recruited as a member of the Dimenticato they are given a profile about us. And in that profile there's actually a list of weapons or fighting that we are familiar with and the ones we've actually tried or trained with at the top. Before we became Dimenticato, I had prior experience with guns and Hailey had experience with archery as well as the sword." Alicia smiled a little as she remembered the old days. "Our uncle was in the military, but when his term ended he didn't reenlist because his wife was pregnant, so then he became a police officer. He used to take me and Hailey to a shooting range sometimes and taught us how to handle a gun, though I went more often than Hailey did."

"What about you Hailey?" Yamamoto asked.

"The Great Aunt of a friend was a priestess, and I really admired her. She wasn't all stuffy and didn't reprimand others for making fun of her profession. She was really cool, and she liked teasing others, pulling pranks, and having fun. She always said that you should enjoy the life you have because not everyone can have it forever. She was really good at archery as well as the sword. She taught me both of those. She's the one who told me that sword fighting is an art and that I should always respect my opponents," Hailey told the group. "How to fight with a staff was actually thanks to our mom. She wanted us to be dainty like a woman, but still strong enough to kick a man's ass."

Tsuna deadpanned. No wonder these two acted so differently from other women.

"Of course, our dad was the reason we had to take a few self-defense classes," Alicia added. "He was paranoid that one day someone would try and kidnap us, so he made sure that we would be able to kick the offender into the next week if he tried."

"Of course," Hailey continued, "even with prior training, we still have to develop and broaden our fighting ability. So it's not uncommon for our members to choose a weapon that wasn't originally on their profiles list," Hailey continued to explain. "That's why I'm using elbow blades, wires, chains, spear, and one other as well now."

"Aah, I see. You got that one down already?" Alicia asked, making sure to leave out any details.

Hailey nodded. "In any case, you guys have your training to take care of so I'll leave you be. See you." She waved and walked off to her office.

* * *

><p>The next morning Alicia rubbed an eye tiredly and was walking down a corridor on the Vongola side when Yamamoto ran past with a hurried good morning, followed by Reborn wearing a strange female couch outfit on a scooter.<p>

Alicia then turned around and went back to her bed.

The shouts of Tsuna and Lal were heard as she walked away.

* * *

><p>Alicia and Reborn were sitting in the training room, waiting for Tsuna and Yamamoto to run the errand Reborn forced onto them when Danielle burst into the room.<p>

"Did Hailey tell you guys where she was running off to?"

"Not a clue," Alicia took a sip of her tea.

Danielle swore.

"What's wrong?" Reborn asked.

"That idiot boss went outside again, that's what's wrong!" Danielle growled.

Alicia frowned a little. "Why would she do that?"

"Because she went after Chrome!" Danielle exclaimed.

* * *

><p><strong>A curious enough of an ending, I hope. Well what do you think? Please leave me a review about your thoughts. <strong>

**Some of the different sections were hints about parts to come. I invite you to see if you could figure it out! **

**Hope you liked this chapter! See ya!**


	27. Chapter XXVII

**Late update, I know. I was nearly pulled to the bottom of the abyss then buried alive by a mountain and sea of homework, projects, and tests! I barely made it out with my life! Okay, over dramatic, but it was a very tough two weeks. Not only that, but I though I have a week of vacation only to find out I messed up the dates and my vacation is _next_ month. Depressing...**

**Anyways, I hope this chapter is too your liking! Please review afterwards!**

* * *

><p>Chapter XXVII<p>

"And I should care because…?" Alicia trailed off.

"Because she went after Chrome!" Danielle exclaimed.

"So?" Alicia deadpanned.

"What do you mean 'so'!" Danielle exclaimed. "Your idiot sister slash boss went outside again! There's an 86 percent chance that this time she'll be caught! And even if she isn't, Chrome Dokuro is obviously a Vongola Guardian so then the contract between the Millefiore and Dimenticato will be cut!"

"Then let it be cut," Alicia said with a bored look. "Hailey probably has a plan so don't worry about it."

"Usually I would be one of the first people to say that too, but this time I don't think so!" Danielle argued.

"And why is that?" Reborn asked.

"Because the Chrome and Hailey from this time were really close!" Danielle explained frantically. "I think that Hailey went outside to protect Chrome because she is emotionally attached!"

"Eh, she'll be fine." Alicia pulled out a deck of cards and started to play solitaire.

Reborn smirked. "This should be interesting."

Alicia glanced up. "Do us a favor and keep this from getting out to the others, would you?"

"Don't you want to ease Dame-Tsuna from worrying about his guardians?" Reborn countered.

"Nah, he'll just stress out from the fact that the two of them are out there alone, then he'll want to go save them too." Alicia clicked her tongue when she didn't get the set of cards she wanted.

"We'll see. I better go back to Yamamoto now." Reborn stood up and walked away.

"Oi! How long are you going to freak out?" Alicia called out to the other woman without looking up.

Danielle stopped rolling on the ground in worry and looked up. "But I'm worried."

"They'll be back tomorrow, so don't worry." Alicia collected her cards and stood up. "In any case, I better go train a little more. I'm not satisfied with allowing a droid to be able to successfully hit me."

* * *

><p>The next morning Alicia walked in to see the guys dressed up as Sushi chefs. She deadpanned a bit. "What the hell are all of you doing?"<p>

"Ah! Risa-san!" Tsuna called out. "Yamamoto is showing us how to make sushi. Do you want to help?"

"I don't cook unless I have to. I'm more of an eater." Alicia yawned and sat down next to Reborn.

After the sushi breakfast the group headed over to the conference room. Alicia didn't bother to pay attention as they discussed Mukuro and Chrome.

A signal went off on the radar.

"What was that Giannini?" Lal asked.

"It was only for a moment, but we picked up the presence of an unknown, but very powerful ring…" Giannini examined aloud hurriedly. "In the outskirts of Kokuyo Land."

"Kyokuyo Land!" Tsuna shouted. "It could be Chrome…Holding the Vongola Ring…"

Giannini went over the data to see if he had enough to figure out who the ring signal came from. "As I suspected, we don't have enough data… I am unable to determine if the signal our radars detected at Kokuyo were real or not…"

"What do we do then…If it really s Chrome, we can't just wait for…" Tsuna trailed off.

The computer sent off another alarm.

"What is it this time?" Yamamoto asked.

"It's an emergency coded message," Giannini explained.

"The code consists of rows of commas," Reborn observed. "That means…"

"In our slang, the comma represents a head that's been cut off…" Giannini clarified. "In other words, it's a code for killing. It's the assassin squad's code!"

"Erk." Alicia frowned and pulled out three noise cancelling headphones, handing one to Reborn and Lal. They put in on just in time to make Squalo's shout turn into a normal volume of a greeting.

Alicia then proceeded to ignore the whole conversation by taking a nap.

* * *

><p>WHACK!<p>

"ITAAAAIIII!" Alicia fell to the ground holding her head. She turned around to look up at the culprit. "What the hell was that for-"

Hailey sighed and tossed the rolled up magazine to the side. "You moron, you fell asleep during the meeting just now didn't you?"

Alicia laughed nervously. "Wh-What are you talking about? I didn't fall asleep…I was merely resting my eyes…"

Hailey sighed again. "No matter, I'm going to go talk with Chrome and show her, her temporary room since we just got back."

"Hm? Show her, her room? Doesn't Chrome have to go to the medical room?" Alicia asked as she stood up.

Hailey scrunched her face in confusion. "Why?"

"Because Chrome fought Glo Xinia and got badly injured!" Alicia rolled her eyes. How could Hailey forget this piece of the plot?

The white haired twin turned to look at the doorway. "Chrome, do you want me to check your injuries again?"

The purple haired girl peeked around the corner and shook her head.

Alicia gaped. "You…you…you changed the-! Oh my god! You? _You_ of all people! It's the apocalypse."

Hailey hit her sister upside the head. "Don't be so dramatic you moron. Danielle told you I went to save Chrome right, and that's exactly what I did."

Alicia frowned. "What happened to keeping our council about this stuff?"

Hailey sighed. "I told you already, didn't I? When the Millefiore started going after our teachers we snapped. I'm not going to sit back for everything if I can help it."

Alicia raised an eyebrow questioningly. "Our teachers?"

"Go look it up." Hailey turned back and headed toward the door. "Come on Chrome, your room will be on the Dimenticato side of the base for now. Is that alright?"

"Hailey!" Ryohei called out.

Said girl paused and looked around. "Yes?"

Ryohei crossed his arms. "We need to talk and you should be there to help explain."

Hailey sighed and ran her hand through her bangs. "I guess so huh. Though, I'm not sure if I'm the best person to explain that stuff."

"Onii-chan!" The group looked around to see Kyoko and Haru running up to them.

"Oh, Kyoko…Were you always this small?" The boxer asked kindly.

"I'm glad you're safe!" Kyoko exclaimed as she hugged her brother.

"Wait!" Gokudera exclaimed. He directed his attention toward the older boxer. "How did the Varia know you were coming here?"

"Because I was extremely there, of course!" Ryohei replied. "And I've brought back a message!"

'_Kufufufu_'

Hailey twitched a little as the familiar laughter hit her mind.

'_As energetic as they always are it seems._'

'_Like your little groupie isn't?_' She asked sarcastically.

Mukuro chuckled again. '_Touché._'

'_So what do I owe the pleasure of you stalking the inner corners of my mind?_'

'_I came to let you know that the virus has been successfully uploaded, though I doubt that it will last very long._'

'_That's fine. We only need it to send enough to get these kids interested._'

'_Such a round-a-bout method would be easily solved with your technological abilities, would it not?_'

Hailey rolled her eyes. '_You know very well why this must be done. Well you should by now anyways, what with you sneaking into my thoughts all the time._'

'_Very well then little Star-kun._'

'_Enough with the pet names, it's annoying._'

'_All the more reason for me to use them._'

The light hair twin was almost shaking from her frustration. She took a deep breath to keep herself cool before continuing her conversation. '_I take it you're going to try and fight Byakuran pretty soon here._'

'_Perhaps._'

'_I'll create an escape route. Though, mind you, it's not going to be very big. Sharing my mind with so many people has stretched my concentration to its limits._'

'_Kufufufufu. Then I shall keep an eye out. Be sure to prep my little Chrome._'

'_Hmph! Who do you take me for! Of course I'll be doing everything I can to protect Chrome on my side! I'm sure you already snuck a peek of enough of my memories to know I'll be doing everything I can._'

'_Kufufufu, I have and I'm glad to see that you and the skylark are getting along so nicely._'

Hailey blushed a little. '_Go back to your fish tank, you jerk!_'

'_Oya? Did I fluster the little birdie's feathers?_'

Hailey could feel the man's condescending smirk.

'_I didn't realize that you two would be able to make so much progress in such a short amount of time. Then again, I must sympathize with the poor relationship idiot. Not only is he incapable of expressing himself properly, but he had to go and fall for someone who rejects love with all their might._' Mukuro sighed. '_He must really like the path of eternal battle._'

Hailey twitched. '_You-! I do _not_ make those types of problems! And even if I did, it would be none of your business!_'

Mukuro sighed patronizingly. Hailey could practically see the man shrugging and shaking his head in a haughty fashion.

Hailey raised her foot and slammed it repeatedly though the image of the frustrating illusionist and into the wall. "If you have time to bother me, then why don't you do something more useful, ya damn cockroach! Grr! Stupid demon! Go back to your demon world!"

… "Ano…Hailey-chan…who are you talking to?"

Hailey froze. Uh oh…Had she just spoken out loud?... She twirled around to face the group using an innocent face as possible. "I'm sorry, I was on a different train of thought just now. Please don't heed my words."

"So who's the cockroach this time?" Alicia asked lazily. "He must have done something really bad if you're going to insult the poor sucker that much."

A vein popped on Hailey's forehead and her fake smile became more evidently forced. "Didn't I just say to ignore my words?" A few more veins popped as she heard Mukuro snickering.

"Just saying," Alicia held her hands up defensively. "It's not really like you to ignore an important meeting. Even less to have you so pissed off at someone."

"I said, ignore it." Hailey growled. "I'm a mafia boss of one of the biggest and most influential families in the world. So it's only natural that my concentration is running little thin, considering everything that my mind has to process."

Alicia ignored her sister's explanation. "Then again…I think I can think of at least three people that have the capability to irk you so much…"

Hailey finally dropped her smile. "I said forget it!"

Tsuna floundered at the two, unsure of how handle their argument. Reborn on the other hand just watched in amusement. He had an inkling of what had irritated the white panther so much, but he would keep that to himself. After all, it was more fun to tease the girl if he had the obvious upper hand.

"Back to the topic at hand," Ryohei continued. "I visited the Varia as a messenger of the tenth in regards to a certain condition."

"Mine!" Tsuna exclaimed.

Ryohei nodded. "In the middle of that, the Vongola hunt started. Hailey told the Varia about you guys who came from ten years ago. I heard about it over there too."

He proceeded to explain the plan and told Tsuna that the ultimate decision was left up to him. And leaving a floundering Tsuna, Ryohei left the room to get some food and well-earned rest.

"What do I do Reborn?" Tsuna nearly begged his tutor. "This is much bigger than me!"

"You're the boss. Stop that shameful whining," Reborn scolded. "First, think about how you are going to secure your fighting potential to my satisfaction in five days."

"In five days we have to get Chrome caught up and then wrap up your training for all of you," Lal added.

"Right…That's true…There is going to be…A fight…" Tsuna trailed off.

'_Way to state the obvious,_' Alicia thought sarcastically, though she decided to keep her comments to herself for now.

"I'll take care of Chrome," Hailey placed a hand on the other girl's shoulder.

"And when it comes to training, I'm sure we'll be fine!" Yamamoto said optimistically. "Right Gokudera?"

"R-Right," Gokudera tried to say certainly. "Leave everything to us boss!"

Everyone looked around as a phone went off.

"Sorry, but I have to take this" Hailey said with a smile as she pulled out the mobile device and saw the number. She decided to answer in English. "This better be important…No, keep changing the frequency. I don't want to be caught so soon in the game…No that's fine. Just take care of it. Is there anything else?... No. That'll take place two weeks from tomorrow…Uh-huh…Uh-huh…Good…Alright then, ja."

"What was that about?" Alicia asked.

Hailey sighed. "Nothing too important for now."

"Hailey?" Alicia used her big sister warning tone.

The other twin rolled her eyes. "I'm sure you already know about the first part. And the second part is just part of the process of me finding the Dimenticato Quindicesimo."

"Why would you need to find your replacement?" Reborn asked a little sharply.

"Well they should have found one already, since I technically already died in this era, but they held off since I would be coming up from the past. Now they need to find one before we all leave," Hailey answered easily.

"Are you willing to divulge to the rest of us who you picked?" Lal asked.

Hailey shrugged. "Sure, why not. I'm picking my right hand woman."

"But if Alicia goes back too, then how can she be the next boss in this time?" Tsuna questioned.

"Alicia isn't my right hand. That's why she can still act as your guardian in the open," Hailey told the younger set of the group. "Danielle is my right hand. Alicia is my consigliere."

Alicia yawned, unaffected by her sister's reply. She already knew about all of this anyways.

"In any case, my eye patch buddy and I need to get going. We have a lot of prep work to get through and now we're a bit short on time." Hailey waved to the group and started exiting the room with the female mist guardian, but then paused. "You should stop by my office soon, Lal. I have something that might help. I know what it's like after all."

Lal nodded, but didn't say anything.

Hailey sighed and stretched a little. Suddenly she jumped. "What!" She shouted. "Why didn't you tell me about this earlier?"

"Hailey?" Alicia asked. Hailey had shouted so abruptly and started shouting to no one in particular.

"That's a bad idea. My system won't be able to hold up the connection if you do that. I'll do my best in the next few minutes, but this really is short notice," Hailey said quickly, ignoring her sister and the curious stares. She rushed out of the room faster than before with Chrome trailing after her.

"What was _that_ about?" Tsuna asked.

Alicia shrugged and cleaned up her sister's mess. "Something important must have come up with the Dimenticato."

* * *

><p>"Do you think you can do it?" Hailey asked quickly.<p>

Chrome nodded and closed her eyes, relaxing into the folds of the bed. Her mist flame burst into life from her ring and more came out, clouding around her abdomen.

Hailey nodded and walked out of the room. She almost made it back to her room when the wave of pain hit her. She staggered and fell onto the wall for support. '_Damn it Mukuro. What do you think you're doing?_' She lifted her hand to cover her right eye. She had long since learned that sharing part of her mind with the mist guardian resulted in her also sharing his pain.

She twitched and collapsed to the floor as a more vicious bout of pain hit her. Hailey curled into herself, her hand clawing at the eye patch. She knew that her eye was bleeding badly. She let out a strangle scream when a wave even worse than the last hit her.

"Oi! Get a hold of yourself!" A small hand tapped her cheek.

Hailey looked up blearily, barely registering the small hitman in front of her. "I'm…fine…"

"You don't look fine," Reborn countered. "Your eye is bleeding."

"That's the consequence of sharing my mind with a reckless idiot," Hailey mumbled, her words slurring together. Three quarters of her concentration was now focused on breaking the barrier around Byakuran's office and getting Mukuro out of there, so she wasn't really paying attention to what she was saying to the small hitman.

"Fnn, I thought so. You really are sharing your mind with Rokudo Mukuro," Reborn stated. "I take it that this means he's in trouble. What about Chrome?"

"I had Chrome prep for this. She'll be able to maintain her organs on her own, but it consumes a great deal of her energy," Hailey answered truthfully. "For her to be able to go with the rest on the raid in five days…is very unlikely…"

Reborn frowned. This wasn't very good. "What about yourself?"

"I have a job to do here, so I'll be staying behind," Hailey murmured. "Alicia will be going in our place. There's a plan and I have to stick to it, or Tsunayoshi will be upset. We spent so much time planning."

Reborn raised an eyebrow. What did that mean? The current Tsuna was incapable of coming up with that sort of plan. So then, the future Tsuna? But what could they have possibly have planned. Reborn was already suspicious of some of the things occurring in this time, but did the future guardians have anything to do with it? Their Hailey and the future Hibari seemed to know, and it was most likely that Alicia knew as well…He would definitely have to investigate more about this.

Hailey sighed a little and pushed herself off the floor. "Jeez, that idiot," she muttered under her breath. '_He's lucky that I could make a large enough hole for him to escape, not that I can say the same for Greco. But Mukuro is now back in his body so he can recover his strength and Fran has a barrier up to prevent outside interference, though that also means that Chrome and Mukuro won't be able to communicate either Now we just have to wait for after the battle in five days and then Fran can leave to free that stupid illusionist._' Hailey wiped off the blood that had escaped the medical eye patch and turned back to Reborn, who was watching her carefully. "Mukuro is out of the picture now. Don't expect any help from him… I guess you should tell Tsuna a bit of what I told you."

Reborn tilted his fedora forward so that it shadowed his expression. "Dame-Tsuna isn't going to like this…"

"I'll go with you. I was the one in contact with Mukuro so I'll have more information than the others." Hailey grimaced. All she seemed to be doing nowadays is relaying bad news.

* * *

><p>It was after the meeting and Hailey had taken Hibari off to the side for a short while, feeling a little better now that everything still seemed to be going to plan.<p>

"Not the best little tracking device I've ever seen," Hailey commented as she passed the little piece of machinery to Hibari. "I mean really, it's so conspicuous. I could see that sucker a mile away."

The older prefect smirked, but didn't add anything to the girl's rant.

Hailey studied the man and sighed. "Really. I kind of wish you weren't so efficient. I mean, what am I supposed to say? If it was anyone else, then I could ask if you remembered everything. Or I could wish you luck, or something else along those lines. But no. You have to be Mr. Perfect." She rolled her eyes at the smirking man. "I better go. Chrome and I need to go over some stuff before the plan starts. Ja ne."

* * *

><p>Alicia yawned. Sure it was fun to watch the big tonfa boy beating up Tsuna, but she had been watching this for a while now.<p>

"I need a nap. I'm going back now." Hibari, ignoring Tsuna's protests, yawned and exited the training room. Kusakabe followed closely behind.

"Ugh. The sickening moment is going to happen soon," Alicia muttered bitterly. Lal sent her a questioning look, but Alicia just waved her off and rolled over so that she could take a nap.

Lal rolled her eyes and stood up, leaving the training room as well.

A short while later Tsuna returned to try out his idea. Alicia woke up and sat up to watch, it appeared that Tsuna didn't notice her as of yet. She watched as the brunette slowly started taking the stance for his X Burner and started to release soft flames, though she was able to judge that he didn't have enough for the hard flames building up in his other glove. "Mm~, I suppose it wouldn't matter if I caught the kid before he hit the wall."

With a resounding boom, loud enough to shake the room, Tsuna released his hard flames and was sent flying back. At the same time Alicia jumped behind the boy, wound one arm around his waist and released her sun flames behind the two of them just in time for her to land lightly against the wall. She pushed off a little and landed on the ground, still holding up Tsuna.

Alicia smirked as she released the boy. "Not bad. I can't wait to see that technique when you've gotten it all figured out! I'm very proud of you!" She smiled widely, showing her teeth.

Tsuna blushed. He had never seen Alicia smile like that before.

* * *

><p>"It's almost time," Alicia muttered to her sister as the two watched the group discuss the blueprint they received.<p>

Hailey nodded once. "Sho-kun is probably at the meeting where he takes control now."

"Are you really sure you want to go with _that_ plan?" Alicia asked, keeping a hushed tone. "You could turn everyone against you for good."

"It's the best plan we've got for now. We have to take into account Malcolm Dimenticato," Hailey said quietly. "I'm positive that he'll be there during choice."

Alicia frowned a little. "Still…If the others find out that you've agreed to meet Byakuran face to face in two weeks, even if you try to explain to them the reason, they'll still think that you've given up."

Hailey shrugged slightly. "That's the chance I'll have to take." Without another word she left the room.

* * *

><p>Reborn peeked into the room then charged.<p>

Yamamoto charged forward as well. '_Special Tenth Form. __Scontro Di Rodine!_'

There was a clash as the two attacked and passed each other. Then everything was silent and still.

"You pass." Reborn turned around with a smirk.

"Good job Yamamoto." Hailey stepped out from behind the door.

The raven haired boy smiled goofily. "Thanks! I learned a lot from the kid and Squalo."

Hailey smiled softly. "You also maintained that smile. So Reborn and I obligated to tell you our secrets. I also owe you a spar, do I not?"

Yamamoto blinked in surprise, then smiled brightly again. "Alright!"

* * *

><p>Hailey leaned against the wall, letting the cold concrete support most of her weight. '<em>Just a little longer…Just a little longer…<em>'

"Hailey-chan!" Said girl looked around to see Tsuna, Yamamoto, Gokudera, Reborn, and her sister walking up to her.

She put on a calm smile and pushed away from the wall so that she could meet them halfway. "Hey everyone, what's up?"

"Kyoko-chan, Haru, and the other girls made a big feast for tomorrow and they wanted all of us to eat together," Tsuna said cheerfully.

"Oh. Sorry guys," Hailey rubbed the back of her head like in embarrassment, "but I already ate…But I guess I could try eating a little more..."

"That's okay!" Tsuna waved his hands in front of him. "You don't have to force yourself!"

Hailey smiled. "Then why don't I just have some tea."

The group laughed and joked around as they ate. The feast was rowdy. Everyone was in high spirits, even Alicia couldn't help but smile and chuckle now and then. It was almost as if there wasn't going to be an attack on the Millefiore in the next few hours.

Before everyone finished up, Hailey snuck away and headed over to Hibari's side of the base, nodding to Alicia and Reborn on her way out. Along the way there she found Uri and took the storm cat along with her. The kitten appeared to like her and was content to sit on Hailey's shoulders and nuzzle her cheek. The white haired girl found Hibari sitting alone on the porch next to his guardian and walked over to sit next to him, pulling her knees close and hugging them. They sat there in a companionable silence for the longest time before Hailey decided to speak up.

"You should get some rest," the girl murmured.

Hibari didn't move. "Hn, if an omnivore like you doesn't, then I'll be more than fine without it."

"It's not that I don't want to rest, I just…can't…"

Hibari glanced at the girl, silently letting her know that he wanted a clearer explanation.

"Well, you already know about how I would have those horrible nightmares. But now…I just can't seem to be able to fall asleep anymore. I've even tried using medication, but that doesn't seem to work either. But that's not all. Food started tasting bland, so I took food supplements and vitamins and whatnot, but I noticed last week that I forgot to take them, yet I was still fine…It's…strange…" Hailey sighed and stretched her legs out.

Silence engulfed them once again, though for a shorter period of time. Hibari surprised the other slightly by suddenly lying down and using her lap as his pillow.

Hailey smiled. She knew he was only resting because she would worry otherwise. "Thanks."

* * *

><p>"It's time," Alicia muttered, then yawned. She never did like having her sleep interrupted. She waited for Tsuna and the others to run up to her before joining them in a halfhearted jog, keeping her hands in her pants pockets but still keeping up with the group. She had come just in time to hear the last part of Reborn's explanation for why Tsuna and the other's didn't have to go help Hibari. "You really don't have to worry about Tonfa Boy, Tsuna. Besides the reason Hailey is staying behind is so that she can help. Those idiots are as good as dead. Heck, even I don't want to get caught in the crossfire, those two would definitely be more than I'm willing to handle."<p>

"Guu," Tsuna squeezed his eyes shut.

"You know very well how strong Hibari and Hailey are, Don't you, Tsuna?" Reborn asked, trying to convince his student to move on with the plan.

"…I understand," Tsuna muttered. '_I have to trust you guys!_' Tsuna snapped opened his eyes and stared straight ahead with a determined attitude. "Giannini-san, please open the hatch!"

"Let's go beat us up some bad guys!" Alicia cheered sarcastically with a smirk.

* * *

><p><span>Extra<span>- Spectators during Training

Alicia and Hailey decided to sit in and watch one of Tsuna's training sessions with Lal. This would be their first time, so both decided to make the most of it.

"Tsuna! Look out for-!" Hailey called out, trying to warn the boy of Lal's movements. But she was too late, and Tsuna was too slow to react, and he got kicked on his side. She appropriately winced in acknowledgment and appreciation of the critical hit. "-nevermind. It's too late now."

Hailey sighed. The poor boy was getting beaten to a pulp. She really did pity him, taking those sort of blows were no stroll through the park.

Alicia on the other hand was having a ball with the young Vongola's training. The only thing she was missing to make this show even greater was some popcorn.

"Woooot! Go Lal! Beat the crap out of Dame-Tsuna!" Alicia paused and broke into another fit of laughter. "He flew into the wall! Fail! Tsuna! …Tsuna!"

The brunette looked over only to get punched.

"Eh, I forgot. Never mind!" Alicia yelled.

Tsuna groaned as he got up. The older twin was being a complete demon about his training. If he didn't know any better, no wait…he did. Alicia was definitely cheering on Lal and enjoying seeing him getting the crap beaten out of him. And even if Hailey had good intentions, she was nearly as distracting.

He blinked when a hand entered his field of vision. Tsuna looked up to see Alicia grinning in front of him.

"Lal says you can take a break, so she and Hailey went to go get some tea," Alicia smiled toothily as she yanked the boy to his feet. "Not bad tuna fish."

Tsuna raised an eyebrow. "Tuna fish? And what do you mean 'not bad'? You were totally laughing whenever Lal landed a blow."

Alicia chuckled. "Yeah that was funny, however," she continued before the boy could interrupt, "I wouldn't stick around if the fight wasn't a good one, or if it was too one-sided. You have room to improve, yes. But you're not a hopeless case either."

Tsuna smiled. "Thanks, Risa-san."

Alicia grinned and threw and arm around the brunette's shoulders. "Now come on! I want to eat before I go terrorize Gokudera for a little bit!"

* * *

><p><strong>So the story is picking up now as the group runs off to attack Melon Base! This chapter skipped around a lot, but I needed to move through the rest of the fillers quickly.<strong>

**So how it? Tell me what you think! Please Review!**


	28. Chapter XXVIII

**So it seems that this story will be updated on a bi-weekly schedule for a while. It's not as popular as my newer story, so I might be focusing on that one a little more. Also my motivation is a little low. I have ideas for what to write for each chapter, but after school and writing for my other story, I don't have a lot of energy to write this one us as quickly.**

**Despite that, I hope you guys like this chapter! Review equals more motivation to write!**

* * *

><p>Chapter XXVIII<p>

Alicia jogged with the group in her relaxed position of hands in pockets and leaning back in a slight slouch. It was a very unconventional way to run, but as a character in an anime she never seemed to have a problem. Plus she was in really good shape. She yawned a little, totally unconcerned that they were about to attack an enemy base.

Tsuna glanced at the girl running beside him, garbed in her professional black attire along with her black mask covering the other side of her head. '_How can she be so relaxed! But she seems so confident...I'll have to trust her judgment for this mission since she has so much experience. I hope this turns out well._'

"I guess this is where we part!" Alicia said suddenly as the group started to climb into the shaft.

"What!" Tsuna shrieked, though not too loudly.

"Don't worry, I'll be back in a few minutes. There's just a few pesky bugs and cameras of the like that I need to disable for you guys. Be extra careful when you're over the hanger at point C5 of the level three basement, or you might come in contact with a rather unpleasant and temperamental pig." Alicia winked at the group and jumped into a hole they hadn't realized was behind her.

* * *

><p>Hailey checked her handheld device again. The radio signals were being successfully cut off. She nodded and put the device away before turning her attention back to the Cloud Guardian below her.<p>

"Five minutes!" The girl called out to the man, letting him know how much time had passed since the operation started.

Hibari smirked and knocked several more of the intruders down.

Hailey sighed. '_They should be meeting up with Dendro Chilum soon. I wonder how this will play out, as I doubt that Alicia will be sitting on the sidelines. Then again, she likes to show off Tsuna's abilities…Meh, I'll just ask her later._'

* * *

><p>"Who did that?" Yamamoto asked as the smoke started to fade away.<p>

"Wha-!" the Millefiore soldier started.

"It wasn't me," Lal informed the group.

"Me neither," Ryohei said.

"I didn't do anything," Tsuna added.

"It was me." Gokudera smiled smugly.

"Good job, Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna complimented.

The silver haired bomber just smiled as he tossed his box weapon up and down. "Don't mention it."

"Wha-! What the hell!" The bulky soldier yelled as he gawked in disbelief at the group who were uninjured and standing as if nothing had happened.

A laugh drew everyone's attention and Alicia dropped in from the ceiling, wearing her black mask properly. "Yo, Dendro. How's it hangin'?" Alicia landed on one of the crates and sat down with one leg hanging and the other with her knee pulled up. She leaned back on one arm and let the other one rest on her knee in a completely relaxed position.

"The black panther!" Dendro shouted in shock, but he pushed his initial fear aside as his pride took over. "This is perfect! I'll definitely rise several ranks for taking out one of the immortal panthers!"

"Eeeh~, immortal? I was pretty sure that everyone knew that a Dimenticato doesn't live very long. No matter," Alicia shrugged. "I'm not here to fight you. I'm here to watch these brats kick your butt. It's always amusing to watch a live case of the biblical story; _David & Goliath_. Come now giant, it's time to watch you fall in your fight against a tiny pebble!"

"Not funny you stupid gun freak. Now move aside, you useless muscle head," Gokudera said uncaringly. It was obvious that he didn't even consider the soldier a threat. "We don't have time to play with you."

This sparked Dendro's rage even further and coerced him into attacking, only to have his lance caught by Tsuna.

It was then, that Alicia noticed that if she didn't move, then the pig's pet boar was going to ram the crate she was sitting on and knock her over. The girl hopped off said crate and ambled over next to Lal, not even bothering to take a look at the newly revealed box weapon.

"Thanks for disabling all those cameras," Lal said to the girl as she observed Tsuna's fight.

Alicia yawned behind her mask. "No problem. This system was easy enough to hack into. I may not be able to disable the main cameras, because it would draw attention, but the smaller stuff was a simple job."

"Good job, Tsuna!" Yamamoto cheered.

"That was amazing, Juudaime!" Gokudera shouted as he pranced around like a little puppy.

"Talk later, now we have to go, go, go!" Alicia said hurriedly as she shot one of Giannini's camera view altering devices. She grabbed Tsuna's hand and pulled him out of the room, knowing that the rest would follow. She sighed in relief when she knew that they were safe.

While the other's discussed what to do next, Alicia went over to a side wall and opened up a hidden door, revealing a system of wires and cables. The black haired girl pulled out what looked to be a cell phone and pulled out a wire on the bottom, connecting it to the base's system. Alicia then quickly took out as many sensors as she could, leaving the camera's intact. She then hacked into the surveillance system to spy on the main room where Irie and the others were sitting and watching. She clicked her tongue as she watched a man with a turban and a boy wearing a witch costume walk out of the room before unplugging her device and turning back to the rest of the group.

"Gyaaa!" Tsuna shrieked as Ryohei lowered his box weapon to the brunette's wound.

"Juudaime!" Gokudera also called out in alarm.

Tsuna blinked when he didn't feel any pain. "Eh?...It didn't… hurt."

Ryohei laughed at the boy. "Even though it's a flame, this is a dying will flame of the sun attribute. And the characteristics of the sun attribute box is activity." The boxer then explained the ability of the yellow flame as he finished healing the young Vongola's scratch.

"Tsuuuunaaa~!" Alicia whined as she pulled her mask around to the side of her head again, interrupting the groups' antics. "You took so long! Now I'm hungry! Carry me!" The girl then slumped over the brunette, forcing her weight onto the boy.

"Why, you! How dare you burden Juudaime!" Gokudera growled. He grew more infuriated when the girl responded by sticking out her tongue and pulling down under her eye with her index.

"Ara? You don't seemed surprised by senpai's flame's abilities," Yamamoto pointed out.

"Hm? Why should I?" Alicia asked. "I mean, I have the sun flame too." She held up her hand and summoned the yellow flame.

Ryohei crossed his arms and nodded. "That's right! It was Alicia who kept Nono from dying during the Ring Conflict."

"So you _did_ do something!" Tsuna said louder than Alicia wished.

The girl blew a raspberry at nothing in particular. "I didn't do anything. Didn't I already tell you that?"

"I don't see why you keep denying that," Lal commented.

"If people know I have the ability, then they'll expect it all the time. And for Dimenticato, using our other flames tends to use up a greater portion of our energy," Alicia explained. "I can't fight for at least a week if I use my sun flames."

"Don't strain yourself," Tsuna told the girl firmly.

Alicia rolled her eyes. "Like I would do anything else. I have to stay in good condition so that I can continue to protect you."

Tsuna blushed. "Y-You don't n-need to p-p-protect me!"

Alicia ignored the boy's protest and stood up properly. "We should get going. The worse has yet to come. From this time on, I'll be taking this seriously. On my pride as a Dimenticato and as your guardian, I will see you guys through to the end. We _shall_ come out alive."

* * *

><p>'<em>Hailey-nee, the attacks are increasing.<em>'

The white haired girl nodded. '_Yeah, Tsunayoshi's plan is starting to fall into place now._'

'_Are you sure it's alright for me to share your mind right now? I'm sure it must be quite a strain on your mental state._'

Hailey shrugged. '_It's fine. Besides you'll only need to rest in my mind for another ten days, then I'll go over to your main body and help you readjust before going on ahead for the second to last big battle._'

The other person was silent for a bit. '…_Still…I worry for everyone…_'

'_We can only hope for the best. I will do everything in my power to protect as many of your family as I can._'

'_Thanks you, Hailey-nee._' The other person smiled brightly.

Hailey smiled in softly return. '_You are more than welcome…Yuni…_'

* * *

><p>"What's wrong?" Ryohei asked urgently. "What's going on in there?"<p>

"Lal!" Tsuna called out.

Alicia rushed inside, jumping in front of the incomplete Arcobaleno. "Reflect!"

There was an explosion and dust surrounded the duo.

"Lal! Risa!" Tsuna shouted, alarmed and worried for their wellbeing. "Is everything alright?"

There was a cough and the smoke cleared enough for the others to gain a good look at the two.

"It's just a scratch." Alicia winced a little and held her leg. '_Feh, I took Lal's line. In any other case I might have laughed, but that hurt a lot more than I expected._'

"You managed to see through the pattern of these randomly multiplying targets and devise a counter within a hair's breadth. As expected of the black panther of the Dimenticato," a voice called out from the shadows. There was a snap and a boy in a witch costume appeared.

"Is-is that magic!" Tsuna called out in surprise.

Alicia clicked her tongue at the stupidity of the boy's question. "Good morning, Gingerbread. I see you are well enough. But perhaps you'd prefer I call you the vice-captain of the Millefiore's eighth squad."

The boy giggled. "You know, I have a duty to report to my superiors…about all of you being here. Still, killing all of you here wouldn't be a bad idea either. Just like I did to that sensei of yours, Colonello wasn't it?"

Lal started a bit at the name of the Rain Arcobaleno.

"Shut your trap!" Alicia snapped.

"Ooh~! It seems that I've struck a nerve." Gingerbread giggled again. "Then again, the panthers were always very passionate about their teachers' deaths. It was quite fun to watch the two of you in such anguish when I took their lives right in front of you. The white one even screamed."

"D-Did he say Colonello!" Tsuna shouted.

"What did you do to my master!" Ryohei yelled as well. "How much I thrash you depends on your answer!"

All the while, Lal stayed silent as her heart dipped further into turmoil.

"FuFu~!" Gingerbread giggled yet again. "You seem to have gotten the wrong idea! Even for the seven reputed to be the most powerful, the cursed Arcobaleno babies, they drop like dead flies when exposed to the non-trinisette radiation. It's such a tedious matter, really. Why would I bother to kill him personally? All I did was show my cruelest smile while suggesting ways to kill him. And then I watched. That's all."

"Eeh!" Tsuna hissed in outrage.

"You bastard!" Ryohei shouted.

"I even heard…" Gingerbread continued.

Alicia twitched a little. He wasn't supposed to have anything else to say.

"Through the grapevine, that the white panther is more involved with the sky than most think. I even got to see firsthand how truly fragile she is."

Alicia's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

Gingerbread giggled. "After she screamed for Colonello, we let down the barrier and the non-trinisette was released into the rest of the air. It turned out that the white panther was affected as well. It's too bad that Byakuran-sama told us to leave her be or it would have been more than easy to take her in as well. But it was quite amusing how much she cried for the Rain and Mist Arcobaleno. She was much less composed than you, Black Panther."

"Wh-what?" Hailey was affected by the non-trinisette policy? But she…she acted so-…so normal…

Gingerbread smirked. "Oh? You didn't know? Why else has she avoided going outside of her hideout? The fact of the matter is that the white panther is weaker and more pathetic than most believe. Rather than a majestic panther, she is a little kitten puffing up her fur to make herself seem bigger."

"How dare you!" Alicia growled. "If what you're saying is true, then it's the non-trinisette's fault that she can't fight properly! I should kill you!"

"Stand down, Alicia," Lal said calmly. "You won't be taking this one alone."

Alicia's anger disappeared in an instant. '_Hold it! Pause! Rewind! Did I just hear what I think I heard? Lal is going to fight _with_ me? Not alone?_'

"Everyone else, back off. Alicia and I will take this one," Lal continued.

'_Oh my god, she's serious...That's a…good thing…right?_'

* * *

><p>"Kusakabe," Hailey called out lightly.<p>

"Yes, Hailey-san?" The man with the pompadour called out from the top of the hole.

"In about…I dunno, a half an hour? Could you go find Lambo and I-pin?" Hailey turned her attention back to the cloud guardian below her. "We'll also need Chrome. Kyoya and I will meet the four of you outside the cloud entrance."

"And what of Reborn-san and the others?" Kusakabe asked.

"I'll take care of them," Hailey answered without looking up.

"Very well, Hailey-san," Kusakabe replied.

Hailey smiled at the man. "Thank you."

* * *

><p>"Lal! It's a trap!" Alicia yelled. "Those aren't his real limbs!"<p>

"Fufu~! I'm glad you noticed," Gingerbread sang.

Suddenly it was like Alicia's leg was being torn apart and the girl collapsed into the wall with a gasp.

"That's about it, then. Now the real fun begins!" The limbs the centipedes were holding came off.

"Artificial limbs!" Gokudera shouted in surprise.

"Risa!" Tsuna called out.

"Guh!" Alicia grunted and looked down at her leg. A horde of spiders were on her leg surrounding the scratch Gingerbread gave her before.

"What's the meaning of this!" Lal started to demand, but then it hit her. "The projectile I was shot with the moment I entered this room… It was a box weapon that hadn't been activated."

Alicia tuned out the explanation in favor of checking her injury. This didn't look really good, she could practically feel all the spider eggs circulating within her body. If she wasn't careful then this could turn out really messy.

"H-How is that possible!" Tsuna yelled, breaking Alicia out of her thoughts.

"Shit!" Alicia hissed, her muscles tensing in anticipation of pain.

"Look!" Gingerbread snapped his fingers and spiders burst from Alicia's shoulder.

Alicia gave a shout and fell onto her uninjured side.

"Aah!" Yamamoto was too shocked for words.

"Damn you!" Ryohei shouted.

"Oops. Don't move carelessly now," Gingerbread taunted. "Otherwise, they may burst out of her heart next."

Ryohei swore loudly.

'_Hmm…Kill him now or kill him later,_' Alicia thought in amusment, ignoring Gingerbread rant about how pathetic he thought Colonello was. If one looked closely, they would have been able to see sand particles floating around her, and they definitely had nothing to do with a mist flame. '_Revenge is never a good thing, but who said this is gonna be revenge? Muahahahaha, yes I'll end this by humiliating that jerk._' Alicia pushed herself off the ground, all traces of injury except for the cut on her leg was gone. But even that was taken care of as she allowed her sun flame to surround the injury.

The black haired girl smirk. "Now, second stage activate."

Gingerbread's leg shattered. "What!" He whirled around to see Alicia standing like nothing had happened. "How?"

Alicia just ignored the vice-captain. "Don't use that pacifier, Lal. You made a promise to Colonello, didn't you?... Others may not be able to understand an Arcobaleno's hopelessness and despair of the burden you must carry on your shoulders. That's why Hailey and I can't blame Viper for his decision, even though we tried to save them. But I think the two of us have a clue. And if what this person says is true, then Hailey probably has even more of an inkling than I do. So please don't waste the life Colonello gave you on this weak fool."

"How can you still be standing? My spiders should have destroyed your shoulder and leg!" Gingerbread demanded, holding his thigh.

"Hm~, well everything was just an illusion. Actually, I'm surprised you didn't see through it. It wasn't all that strong." Alicia laughed lightly. "What's the matter little dolly? Don't like being outfoxed by a little cat?"

Gingerbread ground his teeth and wiped out his broom again.

"Careful now," Alicia sang as she snapped her fingers. The vice-captain's shoulder burst. "I guess you don't know the properties of the moon flame, correct? Then I'll tell you, the moon flame's characteristic is reflection. The attack earlier never hit me. Instead, it was reflected back onto you. I simply cut myself with a knife to make it more believable. Neat little trick, huh?"

Gingerbread smirked cockily. "That doesn't change anything. There are still spiders going throughout your system. All I have to do is snap my fingers and I'll burst your heart."

The teenagers on the other side of the barrier called out in alarm and distress, shouting to tell Lal and Alicia to make a move.

But Gingerbread only laughed. "Wonderful, isn't it? Hearing all your cries of distress only makes me look forward to snapping my fingers even more."

Alicia's face remained neutral as she watched the boy snap his fingers. But instead of a part of Alicia exploding, Gingerbread's chest burst instead. "That also meant that all the spiders you tried put in my system was placed inside of you. But I guess you didn't think of that." Alicia shrugged and inserted her lit ring into her box weapon, summoning only one of her guns. "No matter, this is the end to this particular doll."

Gingerbread smiled as his face began to crumble and foam. "You are a hateful woman…But…aah…this was fun~."

"No…This was a waste of time. I never considered you my opponent." Alicia moved so that she was in front of Lal again and fired just as Gingerbread's doll exploded. Lal used her centipedes to protect the two of them.

"Thank you, Alicia," Lal said quietly as her box weapon retracted.

"No problemo!" Alicia turned back to Gingerbread's remains, completely ignoring all the guys. "And this is why, I _hate_ dolls!

"Wha! A doll!" Tsuna exclaimed.

Alicia deadpanned. "Duh, that's why I said- Oh never mind."

Lal explained to the other three teenagers about Gingerbread and a bit of his history.

"Scary," Tsuna muttered.

"He's like a fairy or something," Yamamoto said cheerfully.

"Don't you mean a monster," Ryohei deadpanned.

"Frankly, I don't think it really matters. I'm just glad I managed to keep my promise to Colonello-sensei and keep you from using that pacifier," Alicia directed the last part toward Lal, while intertwining her fingers on the back of her head.

"Oi, Lal Mirch," Gokudera interjected, finally deciding to speak up. "It's about time you tell us everything, isn't it? The mystery of… The Arcobaleno."

"I refuse," Lal said without hesitation.

"Why you! You can't keep carrying this burden by yourself!" Gokudera argued.

'_Technically that argument is invalid since there are seven others who are dealing with that curse, therefore she's not alone,_' Alicia pondered to herself.

"Why won't you tell us anything!" Gokudera demanded.

"Say whatever you want, but I won't change my mind," Lal replied emotionless. "If you really want to know…"

'_Uh oh,_' Alicia thought. '_Please don't say what I think you're about to say._'

"Ask Alicia or Yamamoto."

'_Ugh, she said it,_' Alicia groaned internally, her eyebrow twitching a little as she tried to school her emotions into a neutral mask.

"Wha! Even the baseball nut!" Gokudera exclaimed.

"Eh!" Tsuna turned toward his raven haired male friend in surprise. "Yamamoto, you know everything too!"

"Hn…?...Well, yeah," Yamamoto replied a little hesitantly.

Alicia looked up suddenly. "Uh oh."

"What?" Lal asked.

"I forgot to deactivate the alarm system before Gingerbread could activate it." Despite her words, there was no sense of urgency in the girl's tone.

"Wha! Do it now!" Gokudera yelled.

The alarm sounded.

"Too late," Alicia said, looking bored.

"The alarm! Has the enemy found us," Tsuna asked, worry taking over again.

"That damn Ginger…He must have reported us, just like he said he would," Lal muttered.

"Tch, sore loser," Alicia mumbled.

"This wouldn't have happened if you had shut off the alarm in time," Gokudera shouted at the girl.

Once again, the girl replied by sticking out her tongue at the boy.

"We must hurry," Lal exclaimed, pushing everyone toward the door.

"Righto!" The sun guardian called out as he followed.

"And so the game of hide-and-go-seek goes up a notch!" Alicia said cheerfully, running like she had earlier that day.

Tsuna nearly fell over. '_That's not the sort of thing you should be so enthusiastic about!_'

"Stupid gun freak! I thought you said you were going to be taking this seriously for now on!" Gokudera growled. He stopped running when he realized the girl was no longer running with them. "Gun freak?"

The rest of the group stopped and looked back to see Alicia bending over a little with one hand against the wall, holding her up.

"Risa-san! Are you okay?" Tsuna asked worriedly.

"Ah," Alicia looked up, "sorry. I was just a little dizzy, that's all."

Tsuna frowned. '_That's right! She had to use her sun flame since she cut herself to trick Gingerbread._'

Alicia pushed away from the wall. "Let's go. It's even more critical that we take out the surveillance system now."

"Don't push yourself," Yamamoto told the girl.

Alicia sighed. "I've said this several times before now, but: don't underestimate the Dimenticato. I still have a lot more fight in me."

* * *

><p>"Here comes the next round!" Hailey called out. "These guys should be a little more interesting than the first batch. Not much, but still…"<p>

Hibari smirked. "I shall bite them all to death." Hibari viciously took down another Millefiore soldier.

"I need to go talk to Reborn for a bit. I'll meet you by the entrance when you're done," Hailey called out before leaving.

* * *

><p>"The destruction of the server was a success!" Ryohei cheered quietly.<p>

'_Nooo~, that explosion was just Gokudera sneezing. Of course it was a success!_' Alicia thought sarcastically. '_Then again, how would these guys know? They never get to see the cameras to know if it did or not._'

"Then let's move on to destroy the main installation," Yamamoto reminded the group, trying to get them on the move before the subject about the Arcobaleno secret could be brought back up again, but to no avail.

"Hold it." Gokudera reached out and grabbed the raven haired boy's shoulder, stopping the boy from moving on. "We haven't finished talking about the Arcobaleno."

"Hn?" Yamamoto asked, faking ignorance.

"Why do you know about everything?" Gokudera demanded.

Yamamoto looked away from the silverette as the memories of the small hitman's requirement for their training session and the conversation afterwards. "…It was a promise. When I completed my training, Hailey and the little guy told me everything."

"Wha!" Gokudera ground his teeth in disbelief.

"Reborn and Hailey-chan did that!" Tsuna exclaimed.

'_Hmm, I wonder what Hailey had to say?...Eh, I can think about that stuff later. Right now I have some tinkering to do._' Alicia leaned down and placed her ear on the wall, knocking lightly on different spots till she heard the clunk she was searching for. She smirked. Shoichi was about to get a special surprise. She grabbed some special tools hanging from her belt and opened the panel, revealing an array of wires and cables. "Muahahahahahaha. Now let's see. This wire goes here, then this one goes here, and we can put this one with this one, and twist this around, unplug that, then we'll switch these guys, and then this one can go with this one and that one!"

Tsuna and the others looked around when they felt the aura of mischief and mayhem behind them, followed by creepy laughter and slightly unintelligible muttering. They weren't surprised that it was Alicia messing with something, though they were curious as to what she was planning.

"Ano…Risa-san…what are you doing?" Tsuna asked hesitantly.

"Please stay where you are and shut up for a minute will you," Alicia said without looking up. She plugged a couple more wires into a different spot then smiled maliciously. "There! And noooow~…" Alicia plugged a cord from some device from her pocket into the wall and turned toward Tsuna with a suspiciously sweet smile. "Tsuna-kun, can you count backwards from five for me?"

Tsuna sweat dropped. There seemed to a sparkles and an angelic haze around the girl who was asking a not so innocent question. "Why?"

"Please just count backwards from five and you'll be able to see for yourself! Well, hear for yourself," Alicia added the last part as an afterthought.

"B-But…" Tsuna hesitated.

"_Count_," Alicia ordered in a slightly threatening tone, still with a bright smile.

"Five, four, three…t-two….one…" The last number was spoken as just a quiet squeak before suddenly a loud 'boom' was heard a total of six times off in the distance.

"Ha! Take _that_, Jeremy from science! I told you I could rig a series of explosions in a super high tech base!" Alicia exclaimed giddily. Then she chuckled evilly again. "You're not the only one here with advanced technical knowledge Sho-kun, and I ain't sittin' by for this round," She muttered with a satisfied smirk.

"Risa-san, if you were just going to blow up a few rooms, why did you need _me_ to do the countdown?" Tsuna asked somewhat wearily.

"Because Hailey set my voice recognition system with your voice, Tsuna. So you _had_ to be the one to do it," Alicia said like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Besides, it was funny to see your anticipation to what would happen when you finished."

Tsuna sighed. He really should expect these sort of things by now.

"Well, now that I have your attention, I'd like to make an alteration to your plans," Alicia said, becoming serious once more. "For this next part of the mission, it would be best if Tsuna and I stayed behind instead of Lal."

"Why?" The blue haired woman asked. "I'm perfectly capable of fighting still."

Alicia smiled confidently. "I don't doubt that at all. But the next fight would benefit Tsuna greatly."

"How would you know, gun-freak!" Gokudera spat.

Alicia's smile widened creepily. "I'm a Dimenticato, if you had forgotten, and you're not going to want to miss who your fight will be against. This gig is just getting started and there are a lot of little bugs that need to be squashed."

* * *

><p>Extra- Haru's HaruHaru Dangerous Interview! Part I<p>

"It's the time of the show that you've all been waiting for!" The brunette girl in a cutesy yellow dress proclaimed into her microphone.

"Not really, there was only one person who somewhat requested it," Reborn said coolly from his seat across the girl, sipping his espresso.

"Hahi!" Haru exclaimed. "What do you mean by that, Reborn-chan?"

"Nothing, just get a move on." The hitman took another sip of his espresso.

"A-Anyway, today, Haru's guest is someone everyone has been asking for…Risa-san!" Haru waved a white gloved hand in the air as the platform was lowered.

Jazzy music was played as the large 'X' marked box came down from the ceiling. Inside the box was Alicia, head resting on her folded arms…asleep.

"Hahi! Risa-san, wake up! Haru has to do her interview!" The brunette called out.

"Keep talking and I'll kill you," the black haired girl grumbled out darkly in her sleep.

Reborn tsked and placed his cup off to the side. "You're never going to wake her up if all you do is shout, Haru. You have to use force to wake idiots up." Leon morphed into a mallet and the hitman jumped forward to hit the unaware female.

"ARG!" Alicia shouted as the mallet connected with the top of her head. "What the hell, Reborn!"

"It's your own fault for sleeping with your guard down," Reborn reprimanded innocently.

Alicia clicked her tongue. "Well _sorry_~ for not being on par with the world's greatest hitman. And for your information, I didn't even want to be here! This interview is taking place during my few precious hours for nap time! In fact…How'd I even get here! The last thing I remember was being on the roof at school!"

"Hailey gave me permission to bring you here in exchange for moving her interview time to the afternoon," Reborn reported maliciously.

"Why, Hailey! Why!" Alicia sobbed. She sighed and fell back into the same position she had entered with. "Fine, then let's get this over with. Shoot."

"Alright desu!" Haru cheered. "Our first question is-"

"And we're out of time," Reborn cut in, taking a sip from another cup of coffee.

"Hahi!" Haru jolted. "But we haven't even interviewed Risa-san yet."

Reborn ignored the girl and merely hopped off his seat to leave as the curtain started to descend.

"A-Ah! Please watch Haru's HaruHaru Dangerous Interview again!" Haru called out to the camera. "See you again, desu~!"

* * *

><p><strong>I hope the extra was a fun little ending for you guys! This chapter is very long, but it's moving along. Be sure to pay attention to what Alicia does in the background, she'll be dropping hints now and then of her past life as well as some things that occurred during her time as a Dimenticato hitwoman.<strong>

**Please tell me your thoughts! Like I said earlier, reviews help my motivation to keep going!**


	29. Chapter XXVIIII

**Sorry it has taken so long for me to update. A lot has been going on and I've been really stressed. To make things worse my grandpa has fallen seriously ill. I hope you can be understanding in this matter. I won't be putting my story on hold, but it will take me a lot longer to update, and for the little free time I have, I _am_ going to spend most of it writing for my more popular stories. I want to thank you all for your patience and your wonderful reviews.**

**A special thank you to AoKuroUsagi16238, HikariNoTenshi-San, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, xxtoushirou, and AccessBlade for your wonderful reviews. This chapter probably would have taken a lot longer to get out if it wasn't for the motivation you guys gave me through my time of need. Thank you so much.**

**I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, please tell me what you thought at the end!**

* * *

><p>Chapter XXVIIII<p>

"_Dodge- dodge- dodge- dodge- dodge- dodge- dodge- dodge- _dodge_!_" Alicia shouted in her mind as she ran along the side of the tunnel wall to avoid the gunfire. '_Nine Mosca's! _Nine_! What the hell man!_'

Alicia and Tsuna had come down to the sewer tunnels or whatever they were to initiate the second part of the plan. Alicia had come down with the sole intention of just watching, that was…till eight Strau Mosca and one King Mosca came flying through the tunnel. Now she was dodging four of the Mosca (having taken one down already) further down the tunnel.

The raven haired girl flipped over one of the Mosca's attempt to punch her in the back and fired several rounds of her moon flame guns into the center of the robot's back, successfully taking down another. But the small victory came with a price and Alicia was knocked back into the concrete barrier with enough force to collapse a huge portion of the wall. With a grunt and hiss of pain, Alicia pushed herself up and out of the way before the other three Mosca could fire again. She adjusted her mask so that it was a little more comfortable on her face, dodging another blast of dying will flames while she was at it.

Alicia turned to look how far away she was down the tunnel to determine if anyone else could see her. She smirked a little when she saw how distant Tsuna's fight was. There was no way that anyone would be able to see her now, and when she was through with these Mosca, there was going to be no digital evidence either.

"Alright then," the older twin muttered under her breath and pulled out a second box weapon box weapon. This one had a brushed steel or faded silver look. She lit her Vongola ring and stuck the silver flame into the hole. There was a flash and a growl. Alicia smirked. "Let's give this baby a test drive. Cambio Forma…"

* * *

><p>"Chrome," Hailey called out softly, motioning for the two to follow. She waited till she knew that no one else could hear them before speaking and holding out a white feather. "I want you to hang on to this. Ironically enough, it's called Angel's Breath. But it's just a bunch of my star flames condensed into a physical form. If there comes a time where you <em>absolutely<em> need it, then please use this to escape. The only time that I can think of is if you meet another Dimenticato inside the base, and I would prefer if you never use it."

"Another Dimenticato?" Chrome asked shyly. "Like Alicia-san?"

Hailey shook her head. "No, I mean like a member you've never met before. If you meet anyone who says that they're a Dimenticato, then I want you to use that feather immediately. This one feather can transport about four people. But if you can, please don't use it."

Chrome nodded hesitantly.

The white haired twin smile softly. "It's almost time. You should go wait with Kusakabe."

Chrome nodded and started to walk away.

"Ah! And Chrome," Hailey held out her hand as if to stop the girl, who turned around curiously. "Please be safe and take care of yourself."

The purple haired girl blushed, but nodded and scurried out of the room.

* * *

><p>"Phew!" Alicia sighed in relief as she watched the utterly trashed Strau Mosca sink out of sight. "That was a little more unstable than I thought. I definitely need to train with that one a little more if I want to get the hang of it."<p>

She was about to head back down the tunnel when a wave of nausea hit her. She leaned against the wall and took deep gulps of air as she waited for the sickness to fade. '_Used too much of my flames while being unstable…That wasn't very smart. Who knew that, that would be so difficult to control? The first one was a lot easier. I had to use sun flames to heal a bunch of injuries too._'

Eventually the nausea quelled and Alicia was able to go on her way, shoving her hands into her pockets as she ambled down the thoroughly abused drainage system. It wasn't long till she was able to see Tsuna's fight with the King Mosca. But there was no time to rest. Tsuna was about to fire his X Burner and flame output and symmetry with his arms were off.

"Not good," Alicia muttered.

She didn't think she had enough energy left to use her moon flames without calling upon her life energy, so that meant that she needed to use her sun flames… Yeah, she was probably going to pass out after this.

The raven haired girl jumped into the air and provided the extra support that Tsuna had missed in the original manga. She could feel the boy's taught back pressed against her own as their flames drove them together.

"You know," Alicia shouted so that she could be heard over the roar of the flames. "Someday you're going to need to be able to use this technique without me supporting you."

The two landed roughly on the ground. Tsuna fell out of his dying will mode and onto his rear while Alicia just doubled over with her hands on her knees, both of them panting.

Fighting to regain her breath, Alicia raised her head to gaze at one of the fallen Strau Mosca. "Yo, Spanner! You still alive?"

"What!" Tsuna shrieked. He gasped as the chest cavity of the Mosca Alicia was staring at popped open and a man climbed out. The brunette gazed at the man in shock as guilt swept over him.

Alicia chopped the sky guardian's head. "Don't feel guilty. Spanner chose to ride inside with full knowledge of what could potentially happen."

"But," Tsuna started but was quelled when Alicia raised her eyebrow at the boy.

The raven haired girl turned her attention back to the approaching blond, who was holding a gun. "Yo, Spanner. Long time, no see."

"Yo, Hawk-eye," the blond said casually.

Alicia sighed. "Still using that weird nickname? Honestly."

"You two know each other?" Tsuna shrieked.

"Kind of." Alicia shrugged. "Hailey and I spent about a year in America. We met Spanner there."

"I didn't know you were working for the Vongola," Spanner interjected.

"No way," Alicia waved the man's words away with a bored look, "this guy is my lackey. There's no way that I would work under anyone."

Tsuna deadpanned at the girl's words.

"In any case, I have a proposition for you, so you can drop the gun." Alicia crossed her arms as she waited for the blond technician to pocket his firearm. "I know that you are interested in Tsuna's unstable and incomplete new badass technique. And because I don't want to play extra support since it kinda cuts into my sit-back-and-watch-everyone-else-do-the-work plan and you're an amazing technician, why don't you be the one to help him fix it?"

Spanner hummed a bit and took his lollipop out of his mouth to speak. "I don't know. Shoichi ordered me to get rid of the Vongola down here."

"But aren't you curious how strong Tsuna can become? I mean, you designed the King Mosca after studying Vongola Decimo's abilities," Alicia persuaded. "And think, you could be the one to perfect one of those techniques!"

Spanner turned his gaze toward Tsuna, staring eerily.

"R-Risa-san, I'm not so sure about this," Tsuna muttered as he fidgeted under the blonde's gaze.

"Do you sense that he'll harm you?" Alicia asked.

Tsuna shook his head. "No, but-"

"See!" Alicia interrupted. "Then there's nothing to worry about. Besides, don't you trust me?"

"I do, but-" Tsuna tried again.

But Alicia cut the boy off again. "Good! Then what about you Spanner? What do you say?" She held her hand out to the older man.

The blond smiled and grasped the girl's hand. "Okay then."

"Good," Alicia said with a small smile. She promptly fainted the moment she released the other's hand.

"Risa-san!" Tsuna called out in alarm, rushing forward and catching the girl before she hit the ground. He held her close as he tried to find any wounds that could explain her sudden blacking out, only to deadpan when she let out a soft snore.

"Lisa used a lot of sun flames to support your attack just now," Spanner said to the boy. "She probably needs to sleep for a while so that she can regain her strength."

Tsuna sighed in relief. '_Thank goodness, I thought I might have lost you there._' He smiled softly.

Spanner motioned for the brunette to follow. "Come on. She can rest in deck four and I can get started on helping your technique there as well."

Tsuna nodded hesitantly, then pulled Alicia onto his back and trailing after the strange man.

* * *

><p>"So this is the ugly fat man with the ugly fat snake Alicia was talking about," Lal muttered. "She's right. This man is completely intolerable."<p>

The four of them had just walked in to see the man on the floating carpet kill one of their comrades and allow his box weapon to consume the other's without remorse.

"But this means that Senpai is up," Yamamoto said cheerily.

"Tch, I could handle this guy just fine," Gokudera grumbled.

"Sorry octopus head," Ryohei said calmly while digging through his inner suit pocket. "You're too late."

So quickly that everyone but Lal missed it, Ryohei lit his ring and stuck it into the hole of his box weapon. A flash of yellow sprung out, hit the floor then bounced into the air before coming down hard on the storm snake. The light faded and a blurred form flipped away from the snake and landed on the ground, revealing that it was a kangaroo.

"O-Oi," Yamamoto said absently.

"Ah." Even Gokudera was amazed.

"That's…Senpai's…" Yamamoto trailed off.

"Animal type box weapon…" Gokudera finished.

"That's right. She has lived up to my path to become a worthy box weapon of honor," the boxer said proudly, walking up to the animal to pat it on the arm. He looked up fiercely to yell out the creature's name. "Her name is incomparable, to the extreme! Kangaryuu!"

* * *

><p>"You can lay her over there." Spanner pointed to a small bit of padding was laying out. The blond walked over to set some water to boil while the brunette tended to his old friend.<p>

"I really should get going," Tsuna said after lowering the girl onto the mat. "My other friends are in danger and I need to make sure they're okay."

Spanner turned around and held out a folded green uniform like his. "Take it easy, Vongola Tenth Boss. Right now, the two of you are missing in action, understand. And Hawk-eye said I could complete that last thing you used. You can change into this so that your clothes have a chance to dry. Your balance looked off and it seemed like you couldn't shoot at full power."

"Eh...? Shoot…? Do you mean…the X-Burner?" Tsuna asked as he pulled off his coat.

"X…Burner…" Spanner blushed a little. The name was just too perfect.

* * *

><p>Gamma was walking sluggishly down the hall, on his way to report to the room Shoichi had summoned him to support. His wounds had barely just healed, and some of them were in danger of reopening if he placed too much stress on his body, but he was being forced to obey. It frustrated him to no end that he had to follow such a despicable set of people but for the sake of the princess, he had to endure. If only for a little longer.<p>

He was about to pass a small pile of crates when, out of the blue, a white flame burst on top of the front most container.

"Yo, Gamma. Long time, no see." Hailey smiled and raised a hand in acknowledgment. Though, this form wasn't the past version like some of the other Vongola. She was older, appearing to be about 25.

"Tch. What are you doing here, foolish girl?" The blond grumbled. "And aren't you supposed to be either six feet under or switched with your past self?"

"So far I've been using the rumor that I came back from the dead to haunt all of you. That seems to be the most amusing explanation, and I get a kick out of watching the fools panic and freak out. And I can see that you're still refusing to use my name, eh?" Hailey sighed, but became more serious so that she could address her purpose for appearing before the man. "I'm here to try keeping my promise to a few people, as well as to keep you from getting more injured than you already are."

"I don't need your charity," Gamma grouched.

"I don't believe the Dimenticato give out charity," Hailey quipped good-naturedly. "There's always a price somewhere, it may just take a few years to show itself."

Gamma sneered at those words. "So you're expecting some form of payment after telling me whatever you came here for? No thanks."

"Tut, tut, tut, Gamma.," Hailey waved her index finger at the man tauntingly. "You're temper has only gotten worse, but we all know what'll happen every time in the end if you keep that up."

Gamma all but growled at the woman.

Hailey sighed again. "Look. I'm not expecting any payment from you. Your bosses have already filled that requirement."

The blond Millefiore officer glared at the female. "What did Boss and Princess do?"

Hailey smiled sadly. "That is a promise they asked me to keep till the time was right."

Gamma clicked his tongue and looked away mournfully. He stood there in silence as he contemplated what the woman might have to say before sighing and looking up expectantly. "Tell me quickly and I'll decide from there whether or not I want to take you words to heart."

"You're backing yourself into a corner," Hailey said immediately. "When Yuni-chan returned that box weapon to you, she didn't mean for you to use it against the person coming up. You're a good person Gamma. Don't let Byakuran corrupt you. It breaks their heart to see you like this."

Gamma kept his expression neutral, but there was no denying that the woman's words hit home. "What did you have in mind then?"

The white haired woman smiled softly and explained her plan. "If you can take of this, then it will make for a more positive result later on. Do you think you could get it done?"

Gamma nodded a flash of determination went through his eyes.

"Make sure to act your part out convincingly," Hailey warned. "I'll make sure Nozaru and Tozaru collect you afterwards, and then I meet all of you at the specified location."

Gamma nodded once again and in another burst of white flame, Hailey vanished.

* * *

><p>The base shook violently when Shoichi activated his box weapon. The room Spanner, Tsuna, and Alicia occupied was no different.<p>

"Hiiie!" Tsuna shrieked as he grabbed a barrel to help support himself. But just as suddenly as the earthquake started, it stopped. "Oh~~~. It-t-t-t." Tsuna moaned as he sat up. Then he noticed the older male scrambling around. "What's the matter?"

"…I lost an important part," Spanner called back while looking around.

'_I hope everyone is alright,_' Tsuna thought to himself. He turned his attention to his unconscious friend since Spanner was taking care of himself. "I hope the earthquake didn't bother Risa-san."

He walked over and knelt next to the girl's bed to check on her, only to deadpan when the girl snored.

Alicia laughed a little in her sleep, sounding drunk. "Ha, ha, haaaa. Run away Tsuna, Reborn's gonna get chya. Ha ha ha, he got shot…"

Tsuna heaved a heavy sigh and shook his head. But he couldn't help but smile a little. Even when unconscious, Alicia knew how to make him relax a little.

"Here it is," Spanner muttered. He replaced the piece of his invention and looked around toward the brunette. "You can go ahead and enter your hyper mode."

"Eeeh!" Tsuna shrieked. The sudden urge to scoot backwards grabbed hold of his senses, and not a second to soon either since a fist flew past his face a second later.

"So go damn loud," Alicia grumbled darkly. She yawned and sat up. "Have you finished yet Spanner?"

"No. I was going to do a test to see what Vongola's maximum output is," the blond replied coolly, seeming unaffected by the girl's dark aura.

"And you woke me _up_?" The girl hissed dangerously. She sighed exasperatedly. "Why are you so shocked Tsuna?" She asked in a softer tone.

"I felt like that if I went into hyper mode, then Shoichi would notice us," Tsuna explained, looking worried.

"No need to worry! We'll be found out in about an hour anyways!" Alicia informed the duo cheerfully. "A couple of powerful vice-captains shall be arriving then!"

"What!" Tsuna shouted.

"It's not like you wouldn't get noticed eventually. When I finish helping you complete your technique, you'll probably go out to rescue your friends right away," the technician pointed out.

"Alicia and Spanner have a point. If you don't complete your X-Burner, you're going to have a really tough time ahead of you."

"I-I know that!" Tsuna stuttered indignantly. Then he paused as a curly sideburn caught his eye. Even Spanner looked surprised. "Eh…?"

"The only problem, as Alicia pointed out, is that you don't have much time," Reborn said casually, leaning back with his arms crossed behind his head, lying next to the brunette's headphones that were lying next to Alicia's bedding.

"Reborn!" Tsuna yelled.

"Hey there, Reborn," Alicia yawned before collapsing onto the bedding again.

The small hitman smirked. "Ciaossu."

"When did _you_ get here!" Tsuna shouted, reaching to grab the hitman only for his hands to pass through. "Huh!" The brunette swung his hand back and forth through the hitman's image. "You're not solid! Eek! What the hell!"

"Stop shrieking like a girl, Tsuna," Alicia moaned. She opened an eye to gaze at the hitman. "Good timing, I didn't feel like explaining everything to your pupil."

Reborn tsked and shook his head. "What a lazy guardian. Perhaps I should train you myself to get rid of that bad habit." An evil glint passed through his eyes.

Alicia shuddered a little. "No thanks. David, Zach, Ali, and Danielle are Spartan Demon Trainers enough for me."

"Why are you solid?" Tsuna asked again.

"He's a hologram," Spanner informed the boy, still looking somewhat surprised.

"Got it in one, Spanner," the black haired baby complimented.

Tsuna blushed from embarrassment. He should have seen something like that coming since it was Reborn. "A hologram…like in the movies?"

Alicia's concentration blurred out for a little bit, causing her to miss out the Reborn's explanation, but Tsuna's loud talking brought her back again.

"Oh yeah, the earthquake! Did you feel it?" The brunette asked the hitman.

"Hmm? Not here."

Alicia noticed that Reborn had shifted into sitting position while she wasn't paying attention, telling her that she was a lot more physically drained than she had originally thought. She shook her head a little when she realized she was zoning out again.

"Thank god!" Tsuna said happily.

"It's yourself you should be more worried about," Reborn said semi firmly.

The sky guardian looked down curiously. "Huh?"

Reborn turned to address the older male instead. "Spanner, how long will it take to complete the X-Burner?"

"Um…" The blond thought a bit, trying to think of everything he needed to do.

"Do you know this guy?" The brunette asked his tutor, pointing at the blond for clarification.

"Nope!" Reborn replied.

"You sure act like you do!" The young Vongola accused, shocked that his tutor would act that ever, even if he should have expected such things by now.

"Yeah, well. I've been able to hear you ever since you got 'captured', so I know what he's like," the hitman explained. "That and the twins know him."

"But still!" The brunette protested.

"Anyway, if I left it to you, it'd never get done," Reborn continued. He pulled out a gun and directed it toward his student. "You're such a slowpoke."

Tsuna blanched. "Hiiie! Hang on Reborn! T-Time out!" The younger male shouted while holding his hands up in surrender and backing away.

'_Why's he so scared of a hologram_?' Spanner deadpanned.

Alicia sniggered as she watched the exchange through one eye.

Reborn allowed himself one last triumphant smirk, since Tsuna's fear showed just how much influence the small hitman had over the boy, before sobering up. "I've only got intermitted reception, but Yamamoto and the others split up to destroy the facility."

"S-Split up!" The young male couldn't understand why this was happening. It wasn't in their plans to split up.

"Alright, so it's happened. If I'm not mistaken, then Gokudera and Yamamoto should be fighting next then," Alicia muttered blearily, her vision starting to fade out again.

"What?" The brunette as well as his tutor looked down at the girl.

"Hey Reborn, could you wake me up in half an hour?" Alicia mumbled, her eye slowly sliding close as she fought to stay awake long enough to make her request. "I have to go stop the Phantom Knight from killing anyone before that other idiot arrives…But right now…I need…more…sleep…"

Alicia's eye closed and she fell unconscious once more.

* * *

><p>"The tribal committee called! They want their masks back!" Hailey shouted, her hands cupped around her mouth.<p>

But the special attack squad members ignored her and sent a series of multi flame coated chains around Hibari, surrounding him and forming a ball. The few surviving members of the first strain of soldiers sent in for the ambush cheered.

Hailey looked down at her watch. "3…2…1."

The call of chains exploded and Hibari was revealed, smirking at the Millefiore's pathetic abilities.

Hailey shook her head with a small condescending shrug. "Honestly, you guys should have known better by now. Sigh. And Kyoya hasn't even broken a sweat. This probably doesn't even qualify as a warm up."

The grown prefect smirked at the girl's words and continued his attack. When his attention was diverted again, the female allowed her smile to drop. She was going to have to start fulfilling a part of her curse again very soon. Even though it was a requirement in order to balance the core, she just hoped that when the time came, none of the other teenagers were going to see her staining her hands once more.

* * *

><p>Extra- Haru's HaruHaru Dangerous Interview! Part II<p>

"Once again, it has finally come that the time of the show that you've all been waiting for!" Haru practically shouted into her microphone.

"I highly doubt anyone even noticed you had an interview the first time," Reborn commented, holding his usual cup of espresso.

"Hahi! W-What are you t-talking, Reborn-chan?" Haru asked nervously, barely maintaining her smile.

The hitman just took sip of his espresso.

"W-W-Well anyways! Today's guest is mirror opposite of our last guest! Bring your hands together for Hailey-chan!" Haru waved a white gloved hand in the air as the platform was lowered.

Jazzy music was played as the large 'X' marked box came down from the ceiling, completely empty.

"Hahi! Where's Hailey-chan!" The brunette cried out.

Reborn smirked. "She probably skipped out in favor of taking a nap or completing the paperwork I hid from her last night." Leon morphed into a phone and the hitman put it on speaker while they waited for someone to pick up on the other side.

"Hi! You've reached Hailey's phone, however I'm not here right now, so please hang up and never dial this number again! Thank you, good-bye!"

"Hahi!" Haru exclaimed. "That rude message can't possibly be from Hailey!"

Reborn dialed the number again and didn't stop till someone finally picked up.

"What the heck Reborn! You hide my work and now you _still_ won't let me finish?" Hailey growled out of the phone.

"You were due for the start of the interview five minutes ago," Reborn informed the girl with a smirk.

"Ah! Haru's thing right? Crap, be right there." There was a flash somewhere off stage and Hailey walked on. "Sorry Haru. I had some paperwork to take care of." She threw a light glare at the hitman.

"Hahi! How did you get here so fast?" Haru asked.

"Ha ha ha…Uh…I ran?" Hailey rubbed the back of her head as she supplied her lame excuse with a nervous laugh.

But Haru's eyes sparkled. "What an amazing athlete, desu!"

Hailey sweat dropped. "Riiight~…Well, fire away."

"Alright! The fans must know! What is your relationship with Tsuna-san?" Haru asked, a small glint in her eyes.

"Don't interrogate your guests with selfish purposes," Reborn scolded.

"I-It wasn't for me!" Haru denied, though her blush gave her away. "The fans have just been implying that Hailey-chan and Tsuna-san would make a good couple! Just like Risa-san and Hibari-san have been voted to be a good couple!"

Hailey laughed and waved her hand a little. "Cool it Haru, I don't like Tsuna like that. I already have someone I like and Tsuna is just a friend."

"Phew!" Haru wiped her forehead as if to wipe of sweat from her worry. "Thank goodness! Then who do you like, Hailey-chan?"

"And we're out of time," Reborn cut in, taking a sip from another cup of coffee.

"Hahi!" Haru jolted. "But we haven't found out who Hailey-chan likes yet!"

Reborn ignored the girl and merely hopped off his seat to leave, Hailey had already mysteriously disappeared in a flash of light, and the curtain had started to descend on the brunette's show once more.

" Please watch Haru's HaruHaru Dangerous Interview again!" Haru called out to the camera with a wave good-bye. "See you again, desu~!"

* * *

><p><strong>Reviews are lovely!<strong>


	30. Chapter XXX

**-.-...Wow...long time...I'm so sorry! m(_ _)m, but you should keep in mind that out of all my stories, this one is the most difficult to write since I want to keep it as close to the cannon as possible and that means looking up everything and making sure it fits in with bothe the manga and anime!**

**Also, for those who don't know, I was hit by a car and got a broken wrist out of it, so my typing speed is horrible. This was actually supposed to be finished several weeks ago, but...Broken wrist, my job, sick grandpa, and other life issues are adding up.**

**But I want to thank my reviewers: skidney, xxtoushirou, AoKuroUsagi16238, anna the viking XD, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, Guest, and rabbit! If it weren't for you guys, I might not have gotten this out for an even longer period of time since I did say taht I would focus more on my more popular stories.**

**HOWEVER! For those of you who don't really like Hailey, I ask you to let it go for a little. You'll see what I mean soon, but please just ignore her if you must. This will also be a very jumpy chapter!**

**Thanks again and I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

><p>Chapter XXX<p>

"About time you showed up, trash." Xanxus scowled at the woman.

Hailey laughed lightly, but she couldn't completely cover the hollowness within it. "With my time winding down and still with so many things to finish, you should understand that I'm quite busy. I did my portion on the way here in any case."

"Then leave," the Varia leader scoffed.

Hailey smiled despite the aloof attitude. "I just wanted to make sure you knew that a private jet shall be waiting for you the moment you take down the general here. I'm sure you'd like a crack at Byakuran, so I suggest that you don't leave late."

The woman disappeared in a flash of white flame without another word.

* * *

><p>Alicia found that she didn't like waking up to shrieking even more than she thought she would. However, she could only sigh and roll off the padding. She yawned and padded over to where Tsuna was backing away from the hologram of Reborn and flick the boy's forehead.<p>

"Too noisy," she mumbled.

"Ah! Sorry Risa-san," the brunette apologized.

But Alicia just waved him away. "I guess it's good to see that you have all that energy. It means I can leave without worry."

"What!" Tsuna shrieked. "What do you mean, leave?"

"Noisy~," the raven haired girl whined and uncovered her ears. "You're still freaking out about the others right? Well I'm going to go check on them and make sure they haven't died or done anything else that's stupid."

'_What could possibly be worse than death?_' Tsuna deadpanned. But he shook his head and smiled a little. "Thanks, Risa-san."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Mushy moment, pep talk, and other nonsense. Goodbye now." Alicia left with another yawn, but took off at a run as soon as the door shut.

She had slept a little more than she should have and now she had to hurry. She called out a bit of her moon flames, and used their secret properties. She knew that she promised her twin that she would hide them as much as she could until the next event, but right now she needed every boost she could get.

She burst into the room and was just in time to block the Genkishi's final strike with the guard on her gun. She whistled a little. "That was a close call, ne?"

"Risa…" Yamamoto muttered before blacking out.

The Millefiore mist guardian didn't seemed fazed by the girl's appearance though. "Vongola's Moon Guardian."

"Mr. Freaky Brows," Alicia acknowledged in her own way. "Care to dance?"

Alicia didn't give the man a chance to answer, merely firing her other gun at the man and forcing him to retreat a distance. She smirked and knelt to the ground, creating a barrier of flames around herself and Yamamoto in time to protect the two of them from the wall being blown apart by the arrival of Hibari.

She decided that this was her cue to sit back and let the older battle hungry freak take over and turned to attend to the injured Yamamoto.

Alicia sighed. "Why would you utilize your instincts for one thing, but completely ignore them for another." She turned to look over at Lal, who had collapsed against the wall before Yamamoto could get into his fight and sighed again. "Hailey told you that you would collapse from the non tri-ne-sette policy if you stayed out this long. I doubt I'd be able to use my sun flames to heal you. It'd probably do more harm than good since they aren't really a part of the sky set. I better attend to Yamamoto for now. I guess Hailey will look after Lal later."

'_It is sort of odd_,' Alicia mused to herself as she pumped sun flames through the fallen baseball nut, '_how even though I actually want to be able to see the Phantom Knight's illusions, all I get is a room covered in disgusting slugs…I wonder what would happen if I poured salt over them?_'

* * *

><p>"You okay?" Hailey muttered after she finally let up on her sun flames.<p>

"Yeah," Gamma grunted and pushed himself into a sitting position.

"Thank you so much nee-san!" Nozaru cried out, still sniffling but managing a smile.

The white haired woman smiled wearily. She had used up a great deal of flames today, so she let her half-illusion fade so that she was in her younger form. "I'm sorry to put you through all of this."

Gamma smiled crookedly. "If everything works out according to plan, then that'll be more than enough."

Hailey nodded and stood up. "I have to take care of my responsibilities now. Make sure that you're completely out of the base soon, alright?"

The trio nodded and Hailey took off at a light jog. It was time she started taking care of her _true_ duties as a Dimenticato and trial.

* * *

><p>Ryohei coughed. "I extremely hope Risa was right about this…" He muttered worriedly, peering through all the smoke in hopes of spotting the younger storm guardian, but the training room was in shambles. He grimaced, but began pushing aside the ruble to try and find the younger man. They needed to get out of here before back up arrived.<p>

He still couldn't understand why Alicia had been so adamant that Gokudera was the one to fight Gamma, when she knew more than anyone how outclassed he had been the first time they had fought. But, he had to trust in her judgment. Before the twins had died, both of them proved that everything they gave advice on was to be taken seriously. They never said anything without cause or reason, so there must have been a greater purpose to all of this.

He just had to trust them.

* * *

><p>A hooded figure walked leisurely around the base, striking down anyone they saw while singing their own hideously transformed version of 'Rain, Rain, Go Away' eerily. There was no doubt in any person's mind who encountered this person that they were completely insane, but that was also their last thought along with their overwhelming terror.<p>

"Run, run. Run away~

You'll all die sometime today~

And when you do, I will know~

For like a stream your blood will flow~"

The person giggled sinisterly, slicing through another series of soldiers, who were screaming for their lives. Their head tilted from side to side after every verse, repeating the song continuously and with only a short pause in between. They were enjoying the pristine white halls being painted in red. It was just so easy right now, with the Vongola drawing all the attention right now.

The person giggled insanely again. So many to kill, so little time.

* * *

><p>Alicia sighed internally. Everything had happened so quickly, it didn't feel like they had started the infiltration a few hours ago, more like a few seconds. Hibari had smashed open the wall, fought the Phantom Knight, got switched with his younger self, shit happened, they were knocked out (well, everyone else was anyways), and now they were stuck in something akin to a giant fishbowl.<p>

'_What a pain_,' the raven grumbled to herself. She resisted an yawn and forced herself to lie still so that she could appear unconscious when Tsuna arrived.

How long would it take for Tsuna to arrive anyway?

…

Alicia nearly groaned.

Mumbles and grimaces drew the girl's attention and she turned to see the others (except Hibari) making pained faces.

'_Oh yeah, Freaky Brows is using their spirits to kill Tsuna, or at least stop him from attacking…ARG! This means I have to wait forever till her gets here! Screw this! I'm taking a nap!_'

Alicia promptly rolled onto her back and fell asleep.

* * *

><p>One by one, his friends were fired out of the monster that was once Genkishi and grabbed for his throat, chocking the life out of him against their wills.<p>

The monster laughed mercilessly. "What a wonderful sight! How is it? Getting backstabbed by your own friends and family! I would love to kill them! I wanted to kill them that time!"

Tsuna couldn't understand what the monster illusionist was talking about, but he didn't have time to concentrate.

"How about one more to finish the deal?" The phantom knight shouted in his crazed state and spat out one more skeleton. However, this one disintegrated before it could reach anywhere near the brunette, let alone take form. "So the Dimenticato are impossible to use this technique on after all. No matter! There are more than enough to finish you! Descend to hell! Die Vongola!"

Tsuna had had enough. How dare that deluded servant to Byakuran use his friends in such a fashion. His disgust and anger at a peak, Tsuna managed to gently calm and remove his friends from harm's way and fired at the atrocious monster.

When the smoke had cleared and Spanner's safety was ensured, Tsuna's heart nearly skipped a beat from the joy of spotting their mission objective. At long last, they had found the white round machine. He immediately flew up to the floor above with Spanner in tow and took in the circular metallic device that had something to do with all of them being trapped in the future.

Everything was working out. Everything would be fine. Everything-

"That you would beat Genkishi was beyond my calculations, Sawada Tsunayoshi."

"Irie…Shouichi!" The brunette growled, raising a fist in preparation of another battle. He glanced to the people standing on either side of the red head to determine his situation, but he wasn't expecting the see the pink haired women from his battle in the past. "You're Cervello!"

Everything was going downhill…Everything was wrong.

This wasn't supposed to happen. They were supposed to fight, find the machine and return to their time. No one was supposed to get horribly hurt. No one's life was supposed to be on the line, so why?...

Yamamoto and Alicia weren't waking up. The baseball nut was obviously horribly injured, but what about Alicia? Not the forget the fact that if he didn't hand over his ring, they would be poisoned. But Lal and Gokudera wanted him to forget about them and fight Shouichi, but he couldn't just let his friends die.

There was no room to argue. And Tsuna could only watch helplessly as Shouichi walked out of the room and left the Cervello to gather the Vongola sky ring, one of them holding the remote with her thumb brushing the lethal button that could end the lives of so many that were precious to him. But he couldn't just hand over the ring.

His precious friends or the whole world? He had to choose.

What could he do? _What_ could he do? _What could he do!_

Bam! Bam!

Both Cervello chocked a little in shock and fell forward, identical holes in their chest, the remote clattering off a short distance away.

Everyone looked around toward the other end of the room, taking in the newcomer cloaked in black, their shotgun still smoking from the two rounds they fired. The person walked forward at an unhurried pace, the heels of their boots clicking against the concrete.

Tsuna started to move forward to retrieve the remote, but froze once more when the gun was redirected at him.

The person smirked. "I wouldn't move just yet if I were you."

Suddenly a black flame popped out of the chests of the two Cervello and quickly consumed their bodies. No…it wasn't quite a flame, more like a distortion in space. Nevertheless, the remains of the Cervello were eaten up by the darkness. The gun broke apart and disappeared into small burst of the black flame soon after.

The person hummed a bit, as if disappointed. "Only six rounds with a shot gun, huh? I guess I should stick with a revolver since I get double. No matter." The person ignored the rest of the occupants in the room and wondered over to the computer, tapping in a sequence of codes until a video popped up.

For whatever reason, Tsuna couldn't bring himself to move, even after the gun crumbled to pieces. His gut was telling him that it would be unwise to move just yet and that he should watched and listen closely to whatever the person was about to do.

A man popped up on the screen and smiled. "Well, well, well. If it isn't the Reaper of the Dimenticato herself. And how may I help _you_ this evening? Or are you calling to let Byakuran-sama and myself know that you've finally seen the light and decided to join us?"

"Cease your blathering insolent child, as I have no time nor patience for your like." The person's tone no longer held its cruel playfulness, instead taking on a cold hatred.

"Peace, peace, my lady, or do you wish to bring further harm to our famiglia?" The man mocked.

"You are no family of mine!" The hood fell off in their burst and the audience had to bite their tongues from making an audible sound, for before them (no matter how short her hair was, how red her eyes were, or how much older she looked) stood Hailey. "Traitors and killers of the leader class, let alone several hundred of my guardian class, have no right to claim themselves as one of my own! You broke our code and you broke your promises. Nothing you say now could ever redeem your crimes."

"My, my Hailey. What's gotten you so worked up? You should be thanking me really. Without David or Zach around, you can take up Byakuran's offer without any consequences. And not just you, but the rest of the unfortunate souls that were pulled into the Dimenticato fold. Don't you feel cheated? You lose one life only to have an impossible task thrust upon you with an even shorter life span. I just did what anyone would have done if they were capable."

Hailey glared venomously at the man, her eyes seeming to glow a crimson red. "You are nothing but a foolish mortal seeking the impossible. No matter how much you run, death will always find you, Malcolm."

The man tsked. "You were once such a pure soul Hailey, but look what they've turned you into. But with the downfall of the Vongola coming, you shall soon be saved."

Hailey broke out into a cruel and insane laughter. "Saved? You think you can save me? Ha _ha~_! You know nothing about the burden I must bear. You probably didn't even know that I chose it of my own volition!" The girl calmed back into her cruel playfulness once more. "But should assume as much, coming from a pathetic trash, should I not?"

"Hmm. It seems that you have spent one too many nights with the Varia. My dear. You have even started taking on that filthy leader's favorite form of addressing others."

"Xanxus is ten times the man you could ever be!" Hailey snapped. The girl placed her elbow against the table and rested her head against the backside of her hand in a lazy fashion. "Now as to the matter of my call…well, I came to give fair warning. Your foolish actions have long since landed you on my list. There is no one to turned to, no place you can run, no rock for you to hide under that I won't find you. You are my final kill. You are my number 1000. Congratulations." Hailey smiled in a way that made the blood teenagers' behind her run cold and the man on the other side to pale considerably. "I suppose I should thank you for all the victims you have provided me in Japan. I didn't have go around the world to track them down, which was a nice save in flames. But you're still a dead man walking."

"We shall see," Malcolm sneered.

Hailey sighed. "It is children like you that make me feel every second of my age. 'Tis a bother to be the oldest living Dimenticato. I would hate to live for an eternity. But, not matter. Your fate has already been decided. I am only the bringer of bad news and fair warning. Now let's see if you have what it takes to stand before me and accept your fate. Ciao~ Piccollo~."

The video feed cut off and the room went silent.

Hailey sighed and leaned back against the chair, placing a hand over her eyes. "Just a little longer…Just a little longer and it'll all come to an end. Just a little longer…" She sighed again and sat up rubbing her eyes. She sighed and stood up, sparing a short glance at the kids still situated where they were before turning towards the doorway. "Are you going to come on out or what, Irie-kun. You should start explaining everything. Other than that mike on your jacket, I've taken out all the cameras and other security measure left, so we don't have to worry about Byakuran hearing anything beyond this point."

"What!" Tsuna started.

"Thank goodness," the red head sighed and came back into the room. "Ah, I'm so nervous, my knees are shaking."

The man sighed and collapsed to the floor, causing an impatient vein to pop on Hailey's temple. "Oi, don't get all weak now. Do you want them breathing down your neck all the time! Don't be pathetic now!"

"H-Hailey-chan is acting a lot like Lal right now," Tsuna muttered dreadfully watching the white haired woman lecture the red head. He shook his head. That wasn't important right now. "Hailey-chan, get away from him. That's Irie Shouichi! Remember, he's the guy responsible for us being stuck in the future."

Hailey looked around with an almost sad look. "You shouldn't make such assumptions without knowing the full story or the full plan that was set in motion a few months prior to my death."

"You're death?..." Tsuna trailed off.

"I'll let Shouichi explain. But first," Hailey turned toward the chamber where the others were still imprisoned. "Yo, Time Tripper! Get a move on!"

Alicia groaned and sat up. "Shut up Space Junkie. It's already been dealt with."

"Risa-san! You're okay!" The brunette called out happily.

Alicia yawned and looked over. "Why wouldn't I be? I just got tired of waiting and decided to take a nap."

Tsuna deadpanned at this.

"Stupid gun-freak! How dare you worry the tenth!" Gokudera yelled.

The raven haired girl leaned away a little with a hand over her ear and a slight scowl in place. "You're too noisy. Screw this, you can get yourselves out." There was a flash of silver flames and suddenly Alicia was on the outside.

"What! She could have left whenever she wanted!" Tsuna exclaimed.

Hailey frowned. "I told you that you shouldn't use your flames if you could help it. That was completely unnecessary."

"Then he shouldn't have yelled at me," Alicia said uncaringly with a shrug.

Hailey's frown deepened, but she decided to ignore her sister in favor of the others. "Irie-kun has actually been your ally this whole time."

"Wha-! He's on our side!"

"Y-yeah, that's right," Shouichi tried and failed to say smoothly. He then proceeded to explain the overall goal of the situation and what the actual plan that was going on from the very beginning.

"For that battle that's to come…?" Reborn repeated for verification.

"That's right! I'm not the enemy you're after!" Shouichi was slowly building up into a desperate plea. They had to understand the situation, there was so much more to risk if they didn't.

"Fuck you!" Gokudera interrupted. "You're making this up!"

Hailey narrowed her eyes.

"Gokudera is right!" Lal agreed. "Who'd believe a thing you say!"

"W-Wait a sec!" The red head protested. "Just think about it! If I'd wanted to kill you, I'd have done so much earlier already!" Shouichi desperately tried to explain to the group about how he had delayed everything in a manner that would help them gain experience.

Tsuna ran forward and grabbed the front of Shouichi's shirt demanding why he had to bring the other three girls and why they all had to go through something so dangerous.

"If that was the case…" the technician chocked out, "…It couldn't be helped anyways…"

The storm guardian stared with the others in shock. "What the fuck."

"…How could you…" Chrome muttered.

"Uuuu~" Shouichi looked down, unable to hold in his emotions and anxiety any longer. "I've tried my best to plan it all! If something unexpected had happened, I'd be in trouble too! All of this is a lot more serious than you think! Besides, this entire plan was a part of your future counterparts' idea too!"

Tsuna frowned a little at this. "…My idea."

"This plan was of the utmost secrecy held between myself, your future counterpart, the future Hibari Kyoya and the twins. Under no circumstances was the plan to be revealed to anyone else," Shouichi explained. He told them the difficulties the older Tsunayoshi had faced when coming to the decision of brining Kyoko and Haru along with them, but the choice was made nonetheless if they wanted the plan to work.

The brunette released the older man's shirt in shock. "Is that true?... I…I did this…?"

"That's impossible!" Lal interjected. "I know Sawada's personality!"

"Yeah!" Gokudera jumped in. "The boss would never allow the kids to get involved in this!"

"Oh for the love of-! Just shut up!" Alicia snapped.

Hailey sighed at her sister's tact, but decided to cut in. "You're right. Tsuna is not to blame. This plan was ultimately started by Alicia and myself."

"But why?" Tsuna was becoming more confused by the minute.

"The situation was just that grave," Hailey replied evenly. "There were hundreds of situations, but none had as good of a chance as this one. Tsuna, you more than anyone should understand that your strength lies in your desire to protect those precious to you. If everyone sent to the future were only the ones who could protect themselves to a degree, then you wouldn't have put in half the overall effort you did just a few moments ago."

"Now shut up and let Shouichi finish, sheesh!" Alicia griped.

Finally the technician was able to get through his explanation and bring the others up to date with what was really going on. "Ahh! I totally forgot about them! Have you received any contact from Vongola HQ?" Irie asked the small hitman, but was only given a short no. "Not yet then...? Right it's not time yet...uuu...I'm getting nervous again..."

"Calm down Irie-kun," Hailey said gently, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I just got back from there and everything is working out just fine. I can even have Danielle confirm again if you want."

"Really?" The red head asked hopefully.

"What's…happened…?" The sky guardian asked, a little unsure if he really wanted to know.

Shouichi went off explaining both phases of the operation to the group while Hailey went over to check in with her other subordinates as well as the Varia. She discussed the situation with her former student while everyone else waited for a call from the Varia through their own base. Once they received their call, she cut off her own and pulled on her hood so that he face was concealed once more. Her actions did not go unnoticed by Reborn, who sent her a pointed look that let her know that they _would_ be discussing her actions in greater detail later. The white haired girl sighed, but nodded towards the small hitman to signal that she understood before backing into a particularly shadowed corner, watching as they small celebration was cut off.

"Oh, no. This was merely a little break. Both the main battle in Italy and the Melone Base in Japan…" A hologram of Byakuran fluttered into appearance in the middle of the room for all to see. "You have been most entertaining."

Hailey shrank back even more, eyeing the holographic screen displaying the true Six Funeral Wreaths with distaste. She glared at the display of power shown by the Storm Mare ring holder, disliking Byakuran's attempt to scare the Vongola's side.

"Stop this useless talk," Reborn interrupted. "After seeing such a monster, how could we rest properly?"

"Oh! You are the Arcobaleno, Reborn. Oh, I really want to talk to you more, you too Hailey-chan." The hologram of the albino looked around, directly where Hailey was hidden. "We have so much to catch up on after all. But you all can't escape. The Melone Base, where you are located, is going to disappear."

"Disappear!" Tsuna exclaimed.

Byakuran cheerfully explained the basic mechanics as to why the base was going to disappear, smiling all the way. "See you in ten days." And his hologram disappeared.

"Grab onto something!" Alicia called out. She looked around and pulled Tsnua away from the hole he had created from his fight with the Phantom Knight, seeing that he was stumbling in that direction.

After a lot of alarmed shouting and a flash of light, the whole of Melone Base (except the round machine and the platform around it) disappeared just Byakuran promised.

While everyone else continued the conversation, Alicia went over to check on her sister. "What did Byakuran mean by that? You two have never been in contact before, so how can there be anything to catch up on?"

Hailey smiled weakly. "Reborn is going to ask the same thing later, so do you think you can wait."

Alicia grimaced, but nodded. Both of them blinked when there was another burst of light and looked around to see the others getting their box weapons. Hailey smiled lightly at their awestruck faces.

But then Tsuna blinked and looked around at the two of them. "Wait! Why didn't Hailey-chan and Risa-san get a box weapon?"

"Well…" Shouichi started off.

"Because we've had ours since day one," Alicia interrupted, pulling out a silver box to show the group.

"What! Why?" Gokudera shouted in outrage.

"Tsunayoshi gave them to me to hold on to when I arrived," Hailey explained. "We were the ones to initiate the plan after all, so we had to make sure we could cover all your bases when we were brought forth to this time."

"By the way, why are you an adult right now?" Yamamoto asked cheerfully.

Hailey could almost wince at the hollowness, but pretended not to notice. "Sorry about that. It's the form I've been using most of the time while I've been here. Hold on…" Mist flames surrounded the girl and dispersed, leaving a younger Hailey behind. "You're more used to this form, right?"

The group looked like they wanted to ask more questions, but then the Varia took over the communication devices.

Hailey chuckled after the line went dead, meaning Xanxus had crushed yet another mic. "That guy is the same as always I see."

Alicia could only giver her sister a weird look.

"I'll be heading back first. Make sure you watch out for any changes, okay?" Hailey smiled at her sister before disappearing in a wisp of white flames.

* * *

><p>Hailey knocked on the door gently and entered the room with a tray of food and a small smile. "If you're hungry, you should eat silly."<p>

"Ah…" Chrome trailed off quietly. "You…you don't have to stop working for my sake."

"But I feel like it, besides, it's a good excuse for me to run away from all my paperwork, no?" Hailey joked with a smile, placing the tray in front of the girl. "But I won't be able to do this often…You should give those other girl's a chance. You'll like them more than me and Alicia."

Chrome shook her head defiantly. "You and Alicia-san helped me. I am very happy to know you two." The female illusionist had hoped to help the other girl smile more whole-heartedly, but instead was given a solemn one. It was painful just to look at it. "C-…Can I help you, Hailey-san?"

The white haired girl chuckled a little and picked up the now empty dishes. "We'll see. You've actually done more than I could ever repay you for."

"But…"

Hailey shook her head and bid the other girl goodbye before stepping back out of the room. She had just exited her kitchen and was heading back to her office when the sounds of approaching footsteps drew her attention.

"Hailey-chan!" Haru called out.

"Do you want to come with us?" Kyoko asked. "We're going up to the surface for some shopping when Tsuna-kun and everyone else come back."

"Haru and Kyoko-chan are also going to see if we can see our homes!" The brunette girl added.

"I…I don't think that's a good idea," Hailey tried to smile, but it came out more uncertain than she had hoped. "Why don't you guys head on out without me…"

"Nonsense! Come on!" Haru cheered, pulling the girl away from where she really needed to be. "Haru is sure that Hailey-chan wants to see the changes!"

"But I-!" Hailey tried to cut in, but the girl's kept talking and didn't notice the other girl's distress.

When the trio met up with the others to head to the surface, they saw that Alicia had been roped in as well by Yamamoto. Haru scowled a little, but didn't say anything. The group then split, all heading off towards their old homes.

"So this I where David and the two of us are buried, huh?" Alicia asked, staring at the marble slate resting on the ground with their three names carved on it.

"Not really buried, since our bodies just disappear after a few hours when we die in this world. But figuratively, yes." Hailey bent down and set a bouquet of white lily's in between the stone and the one resting next to theirs.

"But the brats are buried here, huh?" Alicia asked in an uncharacteristic soft tone, visually carving the names of the orphans they had taken in and had died from the mafia war.

"Yeah…They said they wanted to stay with us forever, so this is where Zach put them to rest." Hailey brushed her hand over the stone and muttered a small prayer. "We should get going. I'm sure the others will be heading toward the school soon."

"Yeah," Alicia muttered, finally tearing her eyes away and heading back the way they came.

_To the souls of the dearly departed, may you overcome these extreme trials and find that final paradise so that we may meet each other once again._

"_Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, but not absence of fear."_

_-Mark Twain_

* * *

><p><strong>A solemn ending, but this is a darker future.<strong>

**Hope you enjoyed! Please review and tell me what you thought!**


	31. Chapter XXXI

**Who said this story was complete? I already said in the last chapter that it just takes me a really long time to type out this story compared to the other ones since I'm trying to follow the cannon as closely as possible.**

**Sigh.**

**But I want to say a HUUUUUGE THANK YOU to:skidney, anna the viking XD, xxtoushirou, AoKuroUsagi16238, moonlight0904, OneWhoWasForgotten, icecream flies, Unknown, and KnichtOwl for reviewing! It means a lot and helps me push forward with this story when I would rather work on the others. So thank you!**

**I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

><p>Chapter XXXI<p>

"I still can't wrap my head around the fact that the Varia is helping us," Tsuna muttered.

The group was sitting in the kitchen, Kyoko and Haru having just left to complete chores, discussing the upcoming battle. Hailey was sitting with the group for once, Alicia seated by her side. Though, the latter was snoozing away.

The white haired girl chuckled. "I don't see why not. Xanxus and the others have been a great help these past few years. Then again, if you listened to the older Alicia, you would still think all of you were still at war. But that's partially Tsunayoshi's fault."

"Eh! Mine!" The brunette exclaimed.

Hailey shook her head. "No, the older you. I suppose I should clear this up now and save myself a headache later. When I refer to you by your given names, I'm actually talking about your older forms. If I'm talking about the present you, then I shall refer to you as per the usual from ten years ago."

The group nodded in understanding. It did make sense if they thought about it.

Hailey smiled and continued. "Five years ago from this timeline, Tsunayoshi sent Alicia and myself on a mission with the Varia. The two of us were to be disguised and escort the group through a get together with another famiglia. You assigned me as Xanxus's date for that mission."

"No way!" Tsuna exclaimed.

"And you made it out alive!" Gokudera shouted.

The girl laughed. "If you think that was bad, then wait 'til you head who Tsunayoshi assigned Alicia to be the date of."

The brunette paled. "Oh no."

Hailey nodded. "Alicia was Squalo's date. She held it against the older you for month's Tsuna. Her revenge got so bad that even Reborn had to step in, or you'd surely die of starvation thanks to staying in your office and allowing nothing in or out due to your fear."

"Then why didn't you stop her woman!" Gokudera demanded.

Hailey smiled slyly. "Well, that was _my_ revenge for sticking me with that guy."

The boys shivered. Girls were scary when they were mad.

The white haired girl laughed. "You guys should hear about all the things all of us have done over the years." Her smile tapered off into something more nostalgic and forlorn. "We've all done so much in ten years."

"You speak as if you've lived through it," Reborn pointed out.

Hailey smiled sadly. "In a way, I have."

"What do you mean?" Tsuna asked gently.

The girl sighed. "In order to finish up this mission, I needed to remember everything that occurred through my life. So I left behind my memories so that my past self would be able to retrieve them the moment I appeared in this time. It was sort of like how Shoichi removed his past self's memories of his future experiences, just the other way around for me."

Reborn nodded. This confirmed what he had suspected. "Is that why you don't wear the Vongola Star ring?"

The young woman gazed at the small hitman, observing the cursed man before smiling her sad little smile once again. "A month after the Varia battle, you figured out what the Dimenticato's second mission was. You came to the two of us once again, but this time you asked us to do what we could and not to take up the position as guardians. Alicia and I carry the rings with us, not because we needed to appear as guardians to others, but because Tsunayoshi asked us to carry them because we were family. That is why we don't wear them on our fingers, but still keep it close."

"So is that why Byakuran implied you two knew each other closely?" Alicia interrupted, sitting up and proving that she had actually been listening all along. "Did you two get to know each other between these ten years?"

Hailey's gaze became unfocused. "Byakuran huh…He-…Byakuran has been and always will be one of my biggest regrets. And he's one of the many I'll never be able to amend."

"Hailey," Daniel said softly, having appeared from the shadows. She placed a gentle hand on the shorter woman's shoulder. "It wasn't your fault."

The white haired girl closed her eyes for a moment. "I suppose it's hardly ever someone else's fault. I just can't help but…"

The raven woman nodded. "I know. Your family feels the same way."

Hailey smiled a little. "I know it well. The Dimenticato all have their regrets, don't we." She stood up. "Well, you appearing before me means that there must be something I need to attend to. I'll speak with the rest of you on a later date."

"You should take some time to rest properly," Daniel muttered as they left.

However, Hailey just waved her away. "Leave the resting to the living. The allotted time is running out."

The door closed completely before Reborn could catch the rest of their conversation. He was growing rather frustrated…again. Those two, well three, kept mentioning something about time as well as making the implication that they weren't really living. But that wouldn't make any sense, since they were obviously alive, so was that code for something else? An inside joke perhaps?

Meanwhile, Danielle left Hailey to her work after discussing the details of the upcoming events. The white haired woman sighed and gazed at her office, thinking back to what felt like eons ago even though it was really only a few weeks.

* * *

><p><em>Flashback<em>

_She allowed herself a soft smile as she recognized a couple of the males; she figured the driver must have been a hired hand. "Finally! Someone I know!" She said loud enough for the men to hear._

_They jumped and whirled around, preparing to attack, when they saw whom it was drawing up to them and froze. Hailey smirked and started to wave when the last male finally climbed out of the car. Hailey's eyes widened a fraction of an inch and she too became immobilized. The man took notice of Hailey as well and stared._

_Hailey was the first to regain full use of her brain. She face palmed hard. "Oh for the love of-!"_

"_Hai….ley…" Gokudera mumbled._

_Hailey sighed before looking up again. __"Yo, Gokudera, Yamamoto,….Tsuna-kun."_

"_Before we say anything else, perhaps we should head inside…" Tsuna said calmly._

_The others agreed and followed Tsuna to one of the entrances._

"_You don't seem all that surprised that we're heading into an underground secret base," Gokudera commented._

_Hailey smiled. "Come one Gokudera, you know you can't surprise me. I've known about this one for ages. I bet I even helped with some of the design!" She eyed the doorway that had yet to have a filter for the non tri-ne-sette radiation installed._

"_You know everything huh…Even when you were going to die," Gokudera said blankly. It wasn't a question. After Alicia's dying words, none of them had a doubt in their mind that the twins always knew._

_Hailey's smile became forced. "Hm~? What makes you say that?"_

"_Alicia." It was Tsuna who answered this time. _

"_Oh? And how much did Alicia tell you?" Hailey kept an even pace and tried to maintain a smile, but she knew it wasn't fooling anybody._

"_Alicia said that she knew the day and method that she would die," Tsuna answered quietly. "She also was the one to tell us that you had died, and that you knew there was no cure for your illness."_

"_Hm, is that all?" Hailey sighed a little. "Then there's nothing else I can really say, Tsuna-kun."_

_Tsuna stopped walking and whirled around to face the young girl. "You know everything, right? That's what you were always tell us. So you know of a way to stop your death from happening! How can we save you two?"_

_Hailey had also stopped walking as well and just stared at the man with blank and emotionless eyes. She didn't even bother to keep her happy façade going. "There is no change. We died when we were supposed to. There's nothing else to it… Why are you so desperate, Tsunayoshi?" Hailey studied the man. She seemed to find something because she sighed and smiled sadly. "I see. Then, it appears Alicia and I have failed out second mission. We have failed to be forgotten."_

"_How could I, or any of the others, forget two of our friends…our family?" Tsuna asked softly._

"_You would have done better to forget us. It would have been less painful." Hailey sighed and closed her eyes for a bit. "Tell me, Tsuna-kun, what do you know about me and my sister? Tell me something unique, something others wouldn't. If you can, then I will tell you a piece of the future. But not now." Hailey started walking again, leaving the three men behind. "Either I'll go to your office, or you can come to mine. But I think it would be a good idea if I get an idea of the whole situation."_

_The girl walked off without another word, heading off into a portion of the base that looked the most out of place. Eventually she came to a doorway with a small star engraved upon the top of the doorframe. With a quick glance, she spotted a panel off to the left and managed to open it so that she could type the password, allowing her entrance to her room._

_She wasn't surprised to see it a mess. Her room was always more of a wreck since she had to lead such an organized life. Her room was the one place she could just let loose. The layer of dust was also unsurprising, seeing as her older self was dead for a few months now._

_A pang of fear shot through her heart, but she pushed it back, trying her best to ignore one particular upcoming event. Instead, she strode over to the computer to see if she could find out why she had appeared in the future before Tsunayoshi had died._

"_Hey me!" A video popped up onto the screen the moment the computer started up. "I know you probably weren't expecting this. Well, the fact is that neither was I. This was a last minute change because of certain unforeseen…changes… In any case, you'll find all your answers by activating a little doohickey Aria and Talbot helped me with. It's in the safe beside the bed, you should be able to figure out the password rather easily…" The older Hailey paused, looking hesitant. "Look, it's probably a little weird that I'm apologizing to myself, but…I'm really sorry about…everything. Good luck! And don't do anything stupid!"_

_Hailey was left staring at a blank screen in confusion. What could have possibly happened to create such a dramatic change in plans?_

_Eventually, the young girl shrugged and went over to the safe as instructed, taking out what looked like a coin of glass, sparkling like a diamond._

"_Well…Now what?"_

_Hailey flipped the coin, bit it, tossed it on the ground, and anything else she could think of. After a bit, the girl sat down with a huff and glared at the stupid thing._

"_What do you want from me? A bit of my life essence?" The question was sarcastic, but a sudden uncalled flame sparked from the girl and was absorbed by the gem like disc._

_The next thing Hailey knew was that she was in a world of pain. Several lifetimes of experiences were being shoved into her head and forced into her memory bank. Every pain her future selves went through, she could feel all at once, be it mental or physical._

_It was too much._

_All too much. She screamed in pain, distress, and hatred, just wanting it to stop, for it to all come to an end. She didn't want to see- no, remember all of these things…All of her regrets. It was just too much…_

"_It's not fair…" The girl murmured, tears streaming down her face even as she clutched her head and curled into herself. "It's not fair. It's not fair! __**It's not fair!**__"_

_She grabbed the nearest object and threw it into the wall, barely noticing it shatter to pieces._

_The girl giggled, slowly turning into laughter. But not of glee. It was hollow…and insane._

* * *

><p>"<em>Good evening, Decimo."<em>

"_Ah, Danielle!" Tsunayoshi called out, distracted from his thoughts of Hailey's appearance. "What brings you here?"_

_Danielle looked around slowly before turning back to the Vongola don. "Where is Hailey? I was sure she arrived today…"_

_The brunet male frowned, his thoughts returning to the younger version of his friend and her task. "She went off to find her room I believe."_

"_Merda!" Danielle hissed and rushed out of the office._

_Tsunayoshi blinked in surprise and immediately followed. He caught up outside the open door in time to see Danielle shaking the younger girl, who was laughing in odd intervals in a mentally unstable fashion. He was shocked to see such a manic grin upon the young girl's face, though her eyes were covered with her bangs and tears ran down her face._

"_Hailey!..._Hailey_!" Danielle shook the girl again. "Come on, snap out of it!"_

"_Isn't it funny, Danielle?" Hailey asked, giggling a little. "The world is funny, right? Everything we experience is just a joke. That's how people escape pain, right? If you treat life like a game, then it can't hurt you, because it's not real."_

"_Hailey, don't you dare fall toward that!" Danielle hissed. _

"_But it hurts and I don't want to hurt," Hailey argued. "If this is just a game, no a story, then I can dictate the ending, right? It's not real, so it's okay if I change everything. Then I won't have to hate so much, and regret so much, and hurt so much. Then all the bad things will just go away."_

"_I know it hurts, but if you treat life like a game, then you'll end up hurting more people and regretting everything even more. I know you didn't expect any of that to happen, but that's no reason to lose yourself. I know you've seen good things too. I know you still have hope."_

_The grin faded and Hailey finally looked up, her eyes desperate, sad, and…old. Too old for one with such a young face. Tsunayoshi pulled back and leaned against the wall, out of sight._

"_It's all my fault Danielle and…and I don't think there's any way to save him. He's my…he's my family and I can't save him. And then I hurt so many others too. What about _him_? How do I face that man now? And…and _him_ too? All three of them? What do I tell Alicia? I've done so much wrong since I became a Dimenticato. Why couldn't they just fail me and end everyone's misery. I hate myself enough as it is. Why do they have to continue pouring salt over my wound? Why can't I just die?"_

"_You know that's not how it works," Danielle said softly._

_Hailey laughed bitterly. "It wouldn't matter anyway. I'm too scared to even take my own life this time around. Is this my punishment? The reason I keep having to experience this? Is this all because of what happened before I died?"_

"_Oh Hailey. Life is just a test and everyone's trial of life is different." Danielle pulled the girl close. "We all have our regrets…some more than others, but it's something we must experience in order to become our own person. We have to believe that the sun will always rise after the darkness. We just have to push forward until then."_

"_What about Kyoya and Brandon? How do I face them after everything I've done? And what about Malcolm? I've done so much to all of them…"_

"_None of that was your fault," Danielle murmured. "You couldn't help those events from taking place. No human has the power to change something like that from happening."_

"_It's so difficult…How do face Tsunayoshi and the others? I've always wanted to tell them the truth, but now…I don't know if I can continue to hold my tongue. But at the same time…I don't know if they would be able to handle the news and trust us ever again. _I_ wouldn't even believe me. And I don't want to hurt them anymore."_

"_That's what your smile is for, right? Even my past self could tell it was always a mask. You and I are very alike. We've always lived in the shadows, but tried our best to ignore that fact. That's why we're here, in this famiglia. This is our chance to show our other side and prove our souls aren't painted as black as we believe they are. It's going to continue to be tough, but we have to give it our all, until the very end."_

"_You sure I haven't run out of time? There's so little of it left. I don't think I can do it…"_

"_You have to try, Hailey. You _have_ to."_

_Tsuna pushed away from the wall silently and walked away, managing to make it all the way back to his office unnoticed._

_So those girls were more vulnerable than they seemed. He suspected as much, but to see it happen right in front of him…No wonder they were so against saying anything. But what else could they be hiding?_

_Was there a chance to change their fate?_

_Flashback End_

* * *

><p>Alicia stared at the doorway, long after her sister had left. It was frustrating how much of a…stranger, her sister seemed to her.<p>

"Risa-san…" Tsunayoshi said softly, hesitating as he tried to figure out how to word his question. "You and Hailey-chan talk keep mentioning a time before your two were in the Dimenticato, and I was wondering…were you two always like this? I mean…what was it like before?"

Alicia smiled nostalgically, yet it was also…rueful. "Hailey and I didn't exactly have the perfect childhood. Then again, I suppose the reason I don't like it so much is because of how everyone else treated my sister."

"What do you mean?" The brunet asked softly.

The raven girl harrumphed. "Our relatives were just a bunch of spiteful pigs. The only reason they even liked me was because I could do so much. But since Hailey was born abnormal in their eyes, they always treated her horribly. They never said anything near our parents, but we could hear them talking everywhere else. But it was all too obvious how they would shun her. She never got any praise for her rights, but they were always sure to scold her for her faults. But Hailey would never do anything but smile. I never understood how she could do that, so I was mad for her. But even through those smiles, I know she hurt. She would always go to the library whenever our relatives came to visit, saying she had to work on an essay, even when she had already finished her homework. Even when our classmates bullied her, she would keep smiling. She never once has she ever fought back against anyone. No matter how hard they pushed, she would just get back up and keep going."

The boys remained quiet, digesting what they just heard. It explained a small amount of Hailey's personality. However, Tsuna couldn't help but feel like there was something missing…but what?

"Ah!" Basil exclaimed. "I have forgotten to give my gratitude to Hailey-dono for sending me the book of information!"

"Haha! That was Hailey's doing?" Yamamoto asked.

Alicia reached over and flipped through the book. "Yeah, it's her handwriting alright. It's a little different, so it must have been by her older self."

"Just how far ahead do you know?" Gokudera gripped.

"We know what we need to," Alicia yawned. She blinked and reached up to press a button on the communication device in her ear. "Ah? Alright then. We'll be there in a few. Ciao."

"What's going on?" Tsuna inquired.

"Shoichi and Spanner are ready to send us to the past to get those Arcobaleno seals," Alicia answered, pushing away from the table and leading the way. '_Still, it's weird. I was sure that Basil appeared after these guys obtained the Arcobaleno seals. But it makes more sense like this, after all, Shoichi said that everyone who traveled to the future needed to be there. So we couldn't just go to the past without Basil. Ah, who cares._'

After checking on Reborn, Shoichi turned to the rest of the group. "Have you recuperated already?" He was relieved when they nodded.

"Shoichi," Spanner called out. "I'm done with the final check. Everything's normal."

"Thank you, Spanner," the red head said with a grateful smile. But he turned back to the younger group with a serious gaze. "I guess you will be pretty troubled when you return to the past. I hope you won't mention anything about this era." The man relayed the rest of the information they needed to know and greeted the two girls when they entered. "So everyone, are you ready?"

"Y-Yes," Tsuna confirmed, turning toward the others to make sure it was alright, his gaze lingering on Yamamoto a bit longer as he remembered the teen's predicament. Thankfully, Yamamoto noticed and tried his best to placate the others.

"Okay, let's set off now." Shoichi motioned for the twins to step forward. "You two know what to do, right?"

"Aray, aray. No one said I had to work," Alicia gripped.

Hailey sighed and smiled a bit. "But our flames are necessary, so there's no use arguing."

The two stepped forward and placed a hand on the machine.

"Hold up, there's one more thing," Shoichi interjected. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small black box. He tossed it to the white haired girl.

However, Hailey barely touched it before tossing it right on back to the other. "That's okay, why don't you continue to hold onto that."

Shoichi frowned and threw the box again. "Hailey-chan, you told me this was essential to your duties."

"I'm good. I've changed my mind," Hailey argued, volleying the small container back toward the red head.

"You said not to trust your arguments," Shoichi disputed.

"Well now I'm saying that I really don't need it," Hailey refuted.

But Shoichi tossed it right back. "You know this is important, even if you didn't tell me what for."

"Hot potato!" Hailey flicked the small cube in a random direction.

There was an insufferable sigh and the box was caught by a new person. "Hailey, just take the damn box and make up with it already."

"But, but," Hailey pouted. "Danielle, that thing hates me."

The violet eyed woman scowled and shoved the box into the younger girl's palm. "If you two don't make up by the time I next see you, there's going to be hell to pay."

Hailey hissed and held the box away from her persons by her other hand, the other one bleeding a little. "Look! See! He's still mad at me! And I don't want to work with him either! He's a bully and does whatever he wants!"

"Gee, I wonder who that reminds me of," Danielle grumbled. She turned back to the red haired technician, ignoring the younger version of her late boss. "Go ahead and get them out of here."

Shoichi nodded a little hesitantly and turned to the other technician. "Spanner."

"Roger." The blond turned back toward the keyboard and began typing away.

The moment the group appeared in the past, Hailey took off. She only had a week to complete the first part of her plan. And if she could, she would like to start on the other part as well.

* * *

><p><em>It was an impossible task.<em>

_Everything Reborn had just told them. If it came down to a fight, there was no possible way for them to succeed. And if that happened, then their future was doomed._

_Was it even worth trying?_

_Even Skull, who has been bullied and pushed around by Reborn during every meeting, was actually a whole lot stronger than they could have imagined._

"_Don't worry Juudaime!" Gokudera interrupted his friend's musing. "We'll be able to get through this! I know you'll be able to overcome whatever the Arcobaleno throw at us!"_

"_Besides," Yamamoto added, "we can always ask Risa and Hailey for help!"_

* * *

><p>"No go," Alicia replied bluntly.<p>

"What!" Gokudera snapped. "Why not!"

"This is a battle for Vongola Decimo and his guardians, and I am not one of Vongola Decimo's guardians. Therefore, the task you give me is invalid and won't be accepted by any of the other Arcobaleno as well." Alicia flipped through the channels of the TV in boredom, not finding anything particularly interesting at the moment.

"Then tell us what you know about the trials so that we can prepare!" The silver haired boy demanded.

"Gokudera-kun," Tsuna admonished lightly.

"That is also an unacceptable task," Alicia reminded the group stoically. "Future affairs are meant to remain future affairs, dealt during the given time and place. The repercussions for telling you something out of place may end up worsening your position even more than where you currently stand, and I don't want to have to clean up that mess. But if you continue to be so persistent, why don't you try asking Hailey. Maybe she has something she feels is alright to tell you."

"Oh? By the way, where is Hailey?" Yamamoto inquired.

Alicia hummed a little, continuing to flip through the channels. "Beats me. I haven't seen her or David since we got back."

"Then where the hell are _we_ supposed to find them!" Gokudera shouted.

"Try a cell phone and see how far that gets you." Alicia yawned and finally stopped on some random soap opera. "Now if you don't mind, and I don't really care if you do, I'm going to take a nap now."

Tsuna sighed. "Come on guys, let's go see if we can find Hailey-chan."

The trio trooped out of the apartment complex and were about to head toward the town center when Reborn jumped out from seemingly nowhere, landing painfully on his student's skull and forcing said student's head into the ground.

"Reborn! What was that for!" Tsuna demanded the moment he was able to sit up.

The hitman smirked. "A boss should always be aware of impending attacks."

Tsuna sighed. He really should have seen that one coming.

"In any case," Reborn continued, "I know where you can find Hailey. She boarded a plane to come back to Japan a few hours ago and should be heading toward one of her alternative residences in Namimori."

"Alternate residences! How many does she have!" Tsuna exclaimed.

Reborn smirked. "A smart assassin always has more than one household to throw off any trails and to fool the enemy. But I happen to know just the house she'll be returning to. If you hurry, you'll be able to catch her just as she arrives, which will give you a better chance to discuss your problem."

The sky guardian's features switched from that of shock to one of determination. Their best chance was to get information from one of the twins, and if Reborn was helping, then maybe he agreed too.

The trio raced to the given location, coming up to house on the outskirts of town in time to hear a crash and see a tree fall over. The three gaped in shock, sharing a look of shock before racing forward to see what was the matter. Had they arrived even a second earlier, they would have been able to catch sight of the black box animal. However, their arrival only gave them the chance to see the Dimenticato boss holding Hailey up in the air, his hand around her neck and his dark unforgiving gaze trained on the bloodied and battered girl.

David dropped the girl, who landed on the ground in a crumpled heap, breathing hard. "You lost control again. At this rate, those flames will consume you and your friends. Your flimsy excuse of control and resolve is pathetic."

Hailey coughed and pushed herself up into a sitting position. "I know."

"Get up," the man commanded. "We're going again."

The girl managed to push herself, though she wobbled dangerously. "Not here. I don't want spectators."

David's gaze trailed off the girl and over to the four intruders. "Take five. We'll start again after that. Don't take any longer. I don't need to remind you how short on time you are."

Hailey nodded once, just managing to catch the damp cloth tossed her direction. She spared a tired glance toward the concern gazes of the group before stumbling over to the house and leaning against it's cool wall. "You're supposed to be discussing the upcoming trials, so why did you lead all of them over here, Reborn?"

"Hailey-chan, are you alright?" Tsuna interrupted. He could tell that the girl was pushing past the brink of exhaustion.

The girl's lip quirked up for a short smile. "I told you my training was harsh, didn't I?"

"But even so…" The brunet trailed off, unable to believe that anyone would push themselves through a life or death battle in the name of training.

The girl shifted a little so that she could move to another cool spot. "We only have one week before going back, and the only one I can really train with properly is alive in this time, so I have to push myself past my current limits. I need to have ten years' worth of training by the time we leave and I already knew the consequences of asking for this training, so you don't have to worry. I'll be sure to come out alive…I have to."

"What about Alicia," Reborn chipped in. "Doesn't she need the same type of training?"

"Ah, well…our situations are a little different," Hailey mused. "I need my body to catch up to my mind, and then there's…" The young woman's eyes glazed over in thought. Suddenly she blinked and looked back up. "It doesn't really matter for your situation. You came here to ask about the Arcobaleno trials, yes?"

Tsuna frowned a little. It was obvious that the white haired girl was trying to lead the conversation down another direction.

Yamamoto laughed a little in an attempt to ease the tense atmosphere. "That right. Haha! Do you know anything that could help us?"

Hailey hummed and tapped her chin. "Don't get too worked up if you can help it. It'll work out if you allow you follow your beliefs." She smiled a little. "I'll try to check up on you guys from time to time. Good luck!"

It was an unmistakable dismissal.

The four said their good-byes and left, heading back to Tsuna's place for a late lunch. The trip back was unusually silent for the three teens, each of them caught up in their own thoughts and similar concerns.

Why did returning to future seem even worse than before?

* * *

><p><strong>Reviews are lovely~!<strong>


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